Did KCPD follow policy in car crash with civilian on Westport Road?
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new details about the circumstances around the crash, and the reasons why police do not consider the action a pursuit.
On Wednesday, a Kansas City police car weaved through traffic to help catch somebody suspected of stealing a vehicle.
The officer drove with the vehicle’s lights and sirens on, traveling in both eastbound and westbound lanes of traffic on Westport Road.
Eventually, while the officer was making a turn onto Broadway Boulevard, a Volkswagen crashed into the Kansas City police car.
One officer, who was a passenger of the police vehicle, received minor injuries in the crash at the intersection of Westport Road and Broadway Boulevard, police said.
Was the police car heading to the scene following department policies?
Per Kansas City Police Department policy, officers are not to engage in a police chase for stolen autos unless the suspect has been involved in a dangerous felony, or if the vehicle or its occupants present a “clear and immediate danger to the safety of others,” the policy states.
As a general rule, KCPD says it does not chase stolen vehicles because of the greater danger high speed chases can present to the general public.
According to Capt. Jake Becchina, a police spokesman, the incident that led to the crash Wednesday was not considered a pursuit.
Police-involved collision
Per KCPD policy, a chase, or pursuit, is defined as “an event which occurs when a member operating a police vehicle attempts to stop a vehicle by activating both red lights and siren, and the driver of the pursuit vehicle refuses to stop or tries to avoid capture by using high speed driving or other evasive tactics.”
On Wednesday, the officer had emergency equipment activated and was traveling to another location to “assist officers in apprehension,” Becchina said, when the Volkswagen collided with the police vehicle.
There were officers in another police car at a location nearby that saw a stolen car being driven. They were moving into the area and the police department’s helicopter unit was being used to call out the location of the car, Becchina said.
The helicopter unit eventually saw the suspect get out of the stolen car and run, Becchina said. A short time later, they took the man into custody on foot, Becchina said.
The officers that were involved in the crash were attempting to, as expeditiously as possible, get to that same vicinity, Becchina said.
Details of the crash on Westport Road
According to Officer Alayna Gonzalez, a police spokeswoman, the crash happened around 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
A marked police vehicle drove east on Westport Road with its lights on, and traveled in both the eastbound and westbound lanes of traffic, the news release said.
As the police vehicle made a right turn onto Broadway Boulevard, it was struck by a gray Volkswagen Passat driving east on Westport Road.
The driver and passenger in the Volkswagen were not injured, according to the news release.
The driver and backseat passenger of the police vehicle were also uninjured. The backseat passenger of the police vehicle was a department member participating in a police academy ride along, Becchina said.
The front seat passenger of the police vehicle, a Kansas City police officer, was taken to a hospital with injuries that were not thought to be life-threatening, according to the news release.
The injured officer was in stable condition Wednesday, police said.
According to KCPD policy, department members may pass on the shoulders or temporarily enter the opposite traffic lanes, against the flow of traffic, “as a last resort only during rare, exceptional circumstances.”
KCPD chase policy
According to KCPD policy, not pursuing a vehicle may sometimes be “the safest and most professional course of action.”
While no one was seriously hurt in the crash Wednesday, police chases have led to devastating outcomes in recent years across the Kansas City metro.
An investigation by The Star revealed many local agencies allowed officers to chase at high speed for any infraction, which goes against best practices and guidance from public safety experts.
High speed police chases resulted in over 150 crashes and 51 injuries across the metro in 2022, according to The Star’s reporting.
The Star’s Caroline Zimmerman contributed.
This story was originally published June 26, 2025 at 4:17 PM.
