at 10 and exclusive behind the scenes look at Arkansas State police's use of tactical vehicle interventions sometimes referred to as pit Maneuvers to stop a suspect who runs from law enforcement from viral videos to training grounds the Arkansas State Police have embraced this contentious yet crucial strategy good evening and thanks for being here I'm Chris Carter in the shadows of heated debates the men and women of the ASP remain Resolute in their mission to safeguard the citizens of Arkansas even if it means dancing with danger it is a controversial and sometimes deadly tactic to stop high-speed Pursuits it's not entertaining to us it makes me sick I get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I hear one of our units engaging in Pursuit because I know how dangerous it is for them I know how dangerous it is for the suspect but more importantly I know how dangerous it is for innocent citizens as the debate over using them rages on One Thing Remains clear Troopers are dedicated to keeping the people of Arkansas safe even if it means putting themselves In Harm's Way Tonight We join ASP for a day of training on tdis in this K-8 investigation [Music] through the lens of a dash camera the world has witnessed this daring dance between law enforcement and escape a vehicle fleeing from police at a high rate of speed and only stopping with a screech of rubber and the thud of an impact the ingredients of a tactical vehicle intervention tvi a moment that can shift the tide of a high-speed chase running around the median we're back Northbound 67 one pit this narrative isn't about the drama of pursuit though it's about a symphony of calculated risk and life-saving measures conducted by those who prioritize the innocent over all else let me see your hands stay hands in the air hands in the air we engage for one reason and one reason only and that's to stop it meet Mike heger he's the director of Arkansas State Police he's been the director for just over eight months but with Arkansas State Police for years for Hager it's not about justifying Pursuits but about ending them with Precision we teach your guys there's a clear priority of life and we take that very serious that priority being number one the innocent citizens of the state of Arkansas number two on that chain is uh the trooper or the law enforcement officer and number three is the suspect ing in a tvi daring or Pursuit is never a trooper's wish in the realm of risk they Traverse a fine line aware of the Jeopardy that TV eyes and tell yet Resolute in their commitment to Shield innocent lives their classroom is Camp Robinson's track they train for two weeks during troop school and have to re-certify annually the training facility is designed to replicate Arkansas's diverse roadways ensuring Troopers are well prepared to handle real life scenarios we spend hours with ASP where they demonstrated TV eyes to us every scenario is different but the technique is the same a trooper approaches a speeding car and makes impact with it resulting in the suspect's car coming to a halt from inside the car about to be TV I got to ride along you can see the trooper approaching moving to the side and making impact before the car spins out of control a symphony of Steel and strategy orchestrated to Perfection but hager's tune is one of gravity he acknowledges the unnatural act of confronting a speeding adversary all in the name of safeguarding the public we are risking people's lives it's a very unsafe and unnatural thing to go up and intentionally make contact with the vehicle in excess of 100 miles per hour yet our Troopers will do that because they understand the priority of life because again it's not about the suspect who chose that accident chose to be in that situation it's not about the trooper that chose to be in that situation it's about stopping that suspect for all those people that did not choose to be in that situation [Music] each scenario is unique but the motive is unwavering tvi training is a critical aspect of preparing Troopers for these high stress situations it is a Lifeline for Troopers caught in the Whirlwind of pursuit an action is not an option you train lucky five because we know you're going to fight like you train as long as you follow a Pursuit and you're not doing something to intervene it's like following an active shooter in the mall or an active shooter in a school and hoping they're a bad shot the ASP policy handbook stipulates Troopers can use tvi when it is objectively reasonable Troopers also consider speed as well as whether there are children or hostages in the fleeing car [Music] the rise in TDI use is evident in the increasing number over the past few years in data from ASP there were 52 incidents in 2018 83 and 2019 a significant Spike to 166 in 2020 132 and 2021 and 157 in 2022. there's more people fleeing you have a lot of cars out there they're a lot faster and they're more capable a lot of times than their operator and which is unfortunate that's also the reason our fatality numbers seem to increase and the increase in the maneuver being used means an increase in Social media videos showing up online according to ASP they have seen a major increase in requests for videos like these in 2022 alone there are more than 2600 requests 600 of them were for commercial use that resulted in more than 4 100 man hours reviewing footage and responding to the requests it cost just under one hundred thousand dollars and your tax dollar is being spent to complete the requests for Hager these sorts of videos were never the goal the only good thing that I would hope would come out of that is that people know not to run from the state police it's not a game to us at all it's not entertaining to us it is a constant balance between Public Safety and risk management for Troopers who are engaged into Pursuit we do not know why a person is fleeing we tell our guys that if you've become as much of a danger to the public as a suspect it's fleeing then it's time to get out behind every maneuver lies careful consideration a judgment call hinging on Public Safety where the only certainty is the unknown and the next move by the speeding suspect could be someone's last what if it's not a near-miss you know what if the next car they pass on the shoulder or the next intersection they go through that's your family that's my family it's people that didn't ask for this the ASP told me a large number of the tbis performed are done in chases where Troopers are just assisting another department because according to them in the interest of Public Safety they will never say no you can see the data used for this report and watch more videos on tdis right now on the K-8 news app developing tonight