LA Cops Fight Car Chases With GPS Devices

With that street-cop psychology, Chief William J. Bratton unveiled Thursday a new and decidedly strange weapon in the LAPD's effort to halt high-speed pursuits.

It is an air-propelled miniature dart equipped with a global positioning device. Once fired from a patrol car, it sticks to a fleeing motorist's vehicle and emits a radio signal to police.

A small number of patrol cars will be equipped with the compressed air launchers, which fire the miniature GPS receiver in a sticky compound resembling a golf ball, for four to six months as a trial.

There were more than 600 pursuits in Los Angeles and more than 100,000 nationwide last year. Critics have long questioned the wisdom of police pursuits because they can endanger bystanders and officers.

More GPS madness. This sounds like a good use of the technology. Little big though. They need to get it down to "spidey-tracker" size.

And I wonder if the police department took into account the loss of revenues now that "Greatest Police Chase Video #XX" will no longer be able to be sold.

via LA Times