Police chase teenagers into wave of Critical Incidents in Northern NSW
The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission has today declared it is monitoring a second Critical Incident following the police pursuit of multiple minors. Both pursuits, which occurred on 25 January in Casino and 28 January in Gunnedah, involved the police pursuit of stolen vehicles by minors. In Casino, a 13-year-old boy is in critical condition after the allegedly stolen vehicle he was in crashed into a motorhome. In Gunnedah, three 14-year-old boys have been remanded in custody after a fatal collision with a motorcyclist whilst being pursued by the police. Several further police pursuits of minors have occurred in the month of January 2025, but did not result in Critical Incidents.
Greens MP and Spokesperson for justice Sue Higginson said: “Police have a responsibility to ensure that members of our community are kept safe. In the instances of underage vehicle theft, it is clear that there is a dangerous pattern occurring where high-speed police pursuits of inexperienced and underage drivers is having deadly results,”
“On 28 January the police began and terminated multiple pursuits of the stolen vehicle, before the incident ended in a tragic and preventable loss of life of a motorcyclist. If the relentless pursuit of underage drivers does not have the desired effect of halting a chase, then alternative procedures must be explored for cases in which a pursuit involves inexperienced and underage drivers,”
“Police chases have proven time and time again to be dangerous, inappropriate and responsible for tragic outcomes. Young people do not set out to wrap themselves around a tree, or take the life of another. They make stupid decisions, they lose control, they miscalculate they take trauma and create more trauma,”
“The Law Enforcement Conduct Commission is now monitoring these two incidents, as a matter of public interest and caution, the standard operating procedures that determine police pursuits of underage drivers should be paused and reviewed with urgency to avoid future avoidable deaths,” Ms Higginson said.