Dashcam footage has emerged showing an Arkansas State Trooper mistakenly executing a PIT maneuver on the wrong car during a pursuit on Interstate 40. The incident occurred on Sunday evening when the trooper, in hot pursuit of two vehicles traveling at excessive speeds, wrongly identified a bystander’s car as the suspect’s vehicle and crashed into it, bringing it to a halt. The trooper involved in the incident, Cpl. Thomas Hubbard, has since retired and an investigation into the matter is ongoing.
The pursuit, captured on the dashcam video, depicts the trooper’s vehicle racing down the highway, overtaking several cars before colliding with the innocent white sedan. Despite the impact, neither the driver nor the passenger of the wrongly targeted car sustained any injuries and declined medical treatment at the scene.
PIT maneuvers, which involve deliberately ramming a fleeing vehicle to force it to lose control and come to a stop, have come under scrutiny in recent years due to their potential for causing harm. In fact, between 2016 and 2020, there have been at least 30 deaths and numerous injuries attributed to PIT maneuvers, with 18 of those fatalities occurring as a result of police attempting to stop individuals for minor traffic offenses.
This incident adds to a growing number of controversies surrounding the use of such tactics by the Arkansas State Police. A 2020 investigation by FOX16 revealed that PIT maneuvers were being employed with increasing frequency, with 306 instances recorded between January 2017 and December 2020, half of which occurred in 2020 alone.
While the trooper involved in this latest mishap has retired, questions remain about the appropriateness and safety of using PIT maneuvers as a pursuit tactic. As the investigation continues, it is crucial that authorities thoroughly evaluate the risks and consider alternative approaches to ensure the safety of both law enforcement officers and the public.
