Watch Kansas sheriff’s deputy use TVI maneuver to safely end car chase near Hutchinson

A dash camera video released by the Reno County Sheriff’s Office shows a deputy using a maneuver to safely end a pursuit earlier this month. Heroin packaged for distribution was found in the vehicle after the chase ended.

The sheriff’s office detailed the incident in a pair of Facebook posts.

The case started Jan. 4 when members of the sheriff’s office drug enforcement unit identified two narcotics suspects while conducting surveillance. The suspects, who are from the Wichita area, were in a white Hyundai Sonata.

The suspects were known to law enforcement to distribute heroin and also had warrants for their arrest on drug charges in Reno and Sedgwick counties.

Investigators watched the suspects make several stops during the night where they appeared to be distributing drugs, one of which was within 1,000 feet of Lincoln Elementary School. At around 2:10 p.m., law enforcement attempted to pull the car over near Fourth and Woodard in Hutchinson.

Instead of complying with the traffic stop, the driver sped away, and cops pursued. Speeds reached more than 85 mph on Plum Street, but traffic was light as the vehicle left town and took a highway into a more rural part of the county. During the chase, the car crossed over into oncoming lanes of traffic several times.

It wasn’t until after the vehicle turned from Blanchard onto K-61 heading north back into the city that law enforcement authorized a tactical vehicle intervention maneuver, or TVI.

A TVI is a controlled use of force using a patrol vehicle to end a pursuit. The officer drives into the fleeing vehicle, pushing its rear until the driver loses control. The maneuver is intended to safely end a chase while reducing the risk of injury to the public, the suspect and law enforcement.

Several factors go into making the decision to perform the maneuver. The sheriff’s office said the reckless driving, severity of charges and the fact that the vehicle was headed back toward the city where several innocent people could be put in harm’s way were considered.

The TVI was performed on K-61 just south of Avenue G. No injuries were reported, no property was damaged and both suspects were taken into custody. Investigators found heroin packaged for distribution, drug distribution paraphernalia, money that was suspected drug proceeds and Alprazolam pills inside the car.

This story was originally published January 30, 2020 at 2:32 PM.