The GSP policy defines a pursuit as “an active attempt” by a trooper in a patrol vehicle to apprehend a fleeing suspect who is attempting to avoid capture. GSP records describe the motorist as the one who initiated the pursuit by not stopping.
The AJC’s investigation found that Georgia has the worst death rate in the country from police pursuits. The state patrol’s aggressive tactics and loose chase policy contribute significantly to this grim ranking.
An AJC analysis of state data detailing GSP pursuits from 2019 through 2023 found troopers with the agency were involved in more than 6,700 pursuits in those five years, a figure that alarmed experts who reviewed the AJC’s findings. Many pursuits began with a traffic infraction, then reached high speeds and led to a crash.
More than 3,400 crashes involving GSP pursuits have left at least 1,900 people injured and 63 killed during that five-year period.
Those killed include a 12-year-old boy in Paulding County, after a trooper intentionally rammed the rear side of the car in which he was a passenger, leading the car to flip; a pedestrian in Savannah, a 56-year-old who was cleaved in half by a car as a pursuit sped through the walkable coastal city; and a 60-year-old man who died when his Toyota Camry was T-boned on the driver’s side by an out-of-control car during a GSP chase in DeKalb County that started over a suspected seat-belt violation.
GSP high-speed pursuits have become so common, the agency has developed a reputation on social media. “GSP don’t play” has become a popular saying among online observers familiar with the agency’s aggressive tactics.
The AJC spent more than a year gathering and analyzing data on thousands of GSP pursuits to measure their risk and impact for those using Georgia’s roadways. Reporters interviewed law enforcement officials and experts, those directly injured in the GSP’s pursuits and family members who have lost loved ones in deadly pursuits. Georgia State Patrol Col. Billy Hitchens received a detailed accounting of the AJC’s findings and questions. Hitchens, who serves as Gov. Brian Kemp’s approved commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, which includes the GSP, declined multiple interview requests. The AJC sent Kemp the findings of its investigation and he declined an interview request.
In a written response from the agency, state patrol spokesman Capt. Michael Burns said the agency’s pursuit policy is “proportionally responsive” to the rise of crime on the roadways, including street racing, aggressive driving and speeding. GSP’s policy is based on “state and federal law, judicial rulings, dedicated training, and sound principles of law enforcement,” he said. (Read the full response here.)
“Every life is precious, and any life lost during the course of ensuring public safety is tragic and heartbreaking,” he said. “The Department of Public Safety protects Georgians by ensuring our members use good judgment and act within the bounds of policy and law.”
