The King County Sheriff’s Office – which provides police services for Burien – announced this week that it will implement a revised Pursuit of Motor Vehicles policy starting Aug. 1, 2024, following recent changes to state legislation.

The Washington Legislature’s revisions to vehicle pursuit laws earlier this year prompted this update. In June 2024, Initiative 2113 lifted certain restrictions, restoring the authority to pursue a fleeing suspect when there is reasonable suspicion of a law violation. However, many risk reduction requirements from the previous legislation remain in place, necessitating policy modifications by the Sheriff’s Office.

The new policy continues to restrict vehicle pursuits to dangerous felonies and DUIs while expanding the definition of dangerous felonies to include burglary. Pursuits for felony crimes and non-felony crimes against a person are permitted under extraordinary circumstances where there is an imminent and ongoing threat to the community.

“The most important factor when deciding whether to engage in a pursuit remains the risk to the community,” said Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall. “Deputies must continually weigh the danger of failing to apprehend a suspect against the danger to the community created by the pursuit. We have given these adjustments careful consideration. We understand the vital importance of striking a balance between holding people accountable for their actions and the well-being of the community.”

The 2021 law restricted law enforcement to chasing suspects involved in a narrowly defined set of serious, violent crimes and required probable cause (a higher legal standard than reasonable suspicion) to initiate a pursuit. The King County Sheriff’s Office averaged just over 15 pursuits per quarter between 2018-2021, compared to 14 per quarter from 2021-2023 after the more restrictive legislation took effect. However, the number of suspects refusing to stop for deputies increased from 41 per quarter before the 2021 law to 138 per quarter afterward.

Despite these changes, the number of pursuits resulting in injuries remained static, and the number of vehicles damaged slightly decreased from nearly four per year to three.

“KCSO’s vehicular pursuit policy has historically been more restrictive than state law, and that’s worked well for us,” said Undersheriff Jesse Anderson. “It was important for us to listen to community members asking us to go after dangerous criminals putting people at risk. That really helped drive our decision.”

The new policy outlines factors deputies should consider when initiating a vehicle chase, including communication protocols, supervisor responsibilities, when to terminate a chase, and training. It applies to all unincorporated King County and the 12 cities contracting with the Sheriff’s Office.

The updated Pursuit of Motor Vehicles Policy will be available in the public General Orders Manual on Aug. 1, 2024.


Since 2007, The B-Town Blog is Burien’s multiple award-winning hyperlocal news/events website dedicated to independent journalism.

One reply on “King County Sheriff’s Office revises Pursuit of Motor Vehicles policy, adds burglary to dangerous felonies starting Aug. 1”

  1. That Sheriff always seems to have a multitude of reasons to not enforce laws, it simply depends on which way the wind blows that day.

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