Here is a case in point in support of the contention that “speed kills.”
The events that led to the fatality began when a law enforcer lit off after a driver who passed his speed trap driving faster than the posted speed limit. The law enforcer sped after him, reaching speeds approaching 120 MPH – which was much faster than the “speeder” had been driving when he passed the speed trap.
The enforcer of the speed limit passes multiple vehicles while driving in excess of 100 MPH – which if you or I did the same would result in a felony stop at gunpoint and (at the very least) a reckless driving charge. Yet it is somehow not “reckless” driving when the same speeds are driven by an enforcer of the speed limit. This is the sort of thing Franz Kafka wrote about and which we’re supposed to not think much about.
Maybe we ought to.
If it is “reckless” for you and I – for anyone lacking a government pass – to drive 100 MPH on a public road then how can it not be the same when those who do have government passes do it? Are they immune from the laws of physics they say apply to us, that are the basis for making it an actionable offense for us to drive at those speeds?
Sometimes, an apologist will say: But they are trained to operate a vehicle at those speeds. If this is accepted then why is it never accepted when a person who is not a government worker but who has also been trained – as by completing a high-performance driving course or possessing a racing license, which isn’t issued to just anyone like a driver’s license – offers up proof that they are trained in court, as a defense against a “reckless” driving charge?
The answer is obvious.
Training has nothing to do with it. Enforcing the law has everything to do with it. Put another way, it is not the “speeding” that is the problem. It is the defiance of speed laws. That is to say, defiance of government authority.
It is the job of law enforcement to go after anyone who defies that authority.
And that is why it is permissible for law enforcers to speed as fast as they like – irrespective of the danger they place others in by doing so.
If an enforcer runs a red light while driving 100 MPH in “hot pursuit” of a speeder and he runs into someone who had the green light and that person is killed, it is probable the enforcer will not be charged with vehicular manslaughter – or even issued a ticket for speeding. On the other hand, if you or I or any other person who is just an ordinary person did the same thing, we almost certainly would be charged with vehicular manslaughter – and our lives would be pretty much over.
As Bob Dole used to say: You know it. I know it. The American people know it.
But we’re supposed to just accept it. Kind of like the way Congress exempts itself from that which it imposes on us, like Obamacare.
Anyhow, the enforcer of the speed limit quickly catches up to the “speeder,” who isn’t driving nearly as fast as the enforcer was up to this point. It turns out the “speeder” is a 19-year-old who was “believed to be suicidal.” Nothing calms down a person considering suicide more than having a law enforcer on his bumper, sirens blaring and lights flashing.
The pursuit continues at roughly legal speeds – 65-70 MPH – and the driver of the “speeding” car eventually exits the highway at low speed. The chase resumes, this time on a single-lane (each way) country road. The “speeder” doesn’t drive all that fast – 60-ish MPH – and it seems he’s just wanting to get away.
Why not let him?
Of course, that would be an extreme affront to the government’s authority. So rather than back off and let things calm down and deal with the “speeder” later – the enforcer had the license plate by this time and so knew who he was chasing – the chase amped up. Multiple enforcers join the chase. Shortly thereafter, one of the enforcers uses his vehicle to tap the “speeder’s” vehicle on its passenger side rear bumper. This is styled a PITT maneuver and it is designed to result in the car being PITTED spinning out, thus ending the chase. In this case, it ended the life of the 19-year-old driver – who was ejected from his car after it rolled multiple times.
And that is how “speed” “kills.” 
The question that ought to be asked that will never be answered is: What would have happened if the chase had never begun? Should it have ever begun?
If it hadn’t, it is probable the 19-year-old would be alive and no one else would have been harmed. But that’s not something that can be indulged when government’s authority is on the line.
. . .
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The police and firefighters still bask in the light of 9/11. As far as I’m concerned, the unearned hubris, lack of common sense, lack of empathy, etc. is making them more enemies than not — at least that’s what I hope.
Back the blue equals kiss my ass.
After reading the national news story years ago about how Cheshire Connecticut police silently surrounded the Petit family home which was undergoing a home invasion and kidnapping and allowed them to be murdered within I learned we should not rely on police to protect us. The mayor defended them saying they did as they were trained. So they are apparently trained to risk their lives and others to arrest speeders but not take risks to protect women and children after being called to save them. Got it.
Exactly RS, they ‘Protect and Serve’ …..themselves.
The same people who parrot “if it saves just one life” are probably ok with this story.
They don’t just lick the boot, they cover it in gravy, add sides, then shove the whole thing in their mouths.
But going too slow is never dangerous, right?
I see plenty of SUVs and sedans with bashed-in liftgates and trunk lids. They probably stopped short, and of course the driver behind should have been paying more attention to the road. But still, the accident happened because the car in front wasn’t driving as expected. I see cops tailgating all the time, in fact that’s pretty much their normal mode because once you see a cop in the rearview mirror you are going to follow the law. Really hard to complete passing someone when we’re all going the same speed for fear of getting a demerit.
And then there’s the slow passers – people who pass a governor’ed semi at just slightly faster than the semi’s speed limit. I see this every day, people who will drive the PSL until it’s time to pass a truck, then it’s 71 (assuming the governor is set to 70) for miles, along with a string of tailgaters behind. Once they’re past the truck, it’s back to 75+. Or worse, once they’re past the truck it’s off to the races with all the now road-raged people behind the timid passer.
Probably not deadly per se, but will shorten your time on Earth due to stress.
The goods cop/bad cop can be answered definitively. Consider the following…
1. All cops agree to enforce all laws, as part of the job. All the time…
2. Many laws are manifestly unjust or cruel, or even wicked.
3. Therefore, all cops agree to enforce laws that are manifestly unjust, cruel or even wicked.
There are no good cops …Dr. Robert Higgs
YMMV….
Eric wrote, ” a 19-year-old who was “believed to be suicidal.” ”
This typical Cop Speak. The term “suicide by cop” has been around for decades. So often when cops gun someone down or, as in this case, kill them by other means, we are told the victim of this murderous tendency wanted the cops to kill them. It is, perhaps, the ultimate case of Blame the Victim.
What the phrase Suicide By Cop actually reveals is the underlying mentality of these armed thugs. That is, they are actually Death Squads by other names. The can dependably be relied upon to kill whomever they encounter if given enough time.
Here is the Wiki page on SbC (yes, it has its own acronym). Notice how this article deftly informs us of the mental state and thought process of The Dead just prior to their demise. It’s interesting that such clairvoyant powers exist in the State Sanctioned Goon Squads.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_by_cop
We no longer have the tyrannical acts the GovCos of yore…because we call them something else.
Amen, Mark –
And then there is the ululation about “officer safety” – which amounts to a license to kill. Does anyone remember when “first responders” were expected to take risks for the sake of other people’s “safety”?
And, just what the heck is a “first responder” anyway? It that a job title or merely an honorific bestowed on the otherwise unemployable?
I am a first responder. It is supposed to mean the people who come to render basic first aid and assistance to a disaster. Somehow it’s morphed into a catch all term and since cops in rural areas are often first on scene, they get the monicker also.
Too bad. I really don’t want anyone thinking I’m a cop.
Our local cops (sheriff and deputies) are actually pretty decent. But that’s what happens when there is very few of them and they don’t have big budgets to blow. This ain’t Mayberry, but it’s as close as you get these days.