High-speed chase ends when OnStar halts stolen SUV


Stop thief: California carjacking suspect nabbed after GM's OnStar halts fleeing SUV

By Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer
On 5:52 pm EDT, Monday October 19, 2009

DETROIT (AP) -- When two Visalia, Calif., police officers swung their cruisers behind a sport utility vehicle that had been carjacked at gunpoint early Sunday, they prepared for a dangerous high-speed chase.

The 2009 Chevrolet Tahoe roared away with officers in pursuit, but shortly after the suspect made a right turn, operators at General Motors Co.'s OnStar service sent a command that electronically disabled the gas pedal and the SUV gradually came to a halt.

The flustered thief got out and ran, but was quickly nabbed after he climbed several fences and fell into a backyard swimming pool, police said.

It was the first time since OnStar began offering the service in the 2009 model year that it was used to end a chase that could otherwise have had dire consequences.

"He wouldn't have pulled over if OnStar hadn't have shut the vehicle down," said Visalia Police Sgt. Steve Phillips. "Generally pursuits end in a collision."

The whole thing began when Jose Ruiz, 33, of nearby Lindsay, Calif., was sitting in his Tahoe in a lighted parking lot about 3 a.m. Sunday while his cousin was talking on a cell phone in the passenger seat. Out of the corner of his eye, Ruiz saw a man walking toward him.

"He already had a gun out," Ruiz said Monday.

The man pointed a sawed-off shotgun at Ruiz and ordered both men to get out of the Tahoe and empty their pockets. Ruiz's cousin at first refused, but Ruiz told him to obey, knowing that OnStar could find the stolen truck with a global positioning system.

"I was afraid he was going to shoot my cousin. My cousin was arguing with him," Ruiz recalled.

The cousin relented and the man sped off in the truck. Ruiz then sprinted for a nearby pay telephone to call police, but ran into a sheriff's deputy on her break who notified Visalia police.

Officers quickly contacted OnStar and got Ruiz's permission to find the vehicle. A half-hour later, police spotted it a few miles away, but as officers made a U-turn to pursue it, the Tahoe sped off at a high speed, Phillips said.

The suspect made a turn, and police dispatchers told the pursuing officers that OnStar was about to disable the Tahoe. It then rolled to a halt, and the robber was quickly captured.

The 21-year-old suspect was jailed and faces preliminary charges of robbery, carjacking, possession of stolen property and resisting arrest.

Visalia Police Chief Colleen Mestas said the new technology kept officers, other motorists and even the suspect out of a dangerous chase.

"Considering the violent crime that this suspect was wanted for, I was just amazed," she said.

Police chases often end in death, many times for the people in the pursued vehicles, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Last year, 334 people were killed nationwide in crashes that stemmed from police pursuits, including five police officers, 235 people in the chased vehicles and 77 who were in cars or trucks not involved in the chases.

Ruiz said police returned his Tahoe, cell phone and wallet to him that night. The only thing they didn't get back was some cash taken from his cousin.

The stolen vehicle slowdown feature isn't offered on all GM vehicles yet, but the company hopes to expand it to the entire lineup as models are updated. For 2010, the feature is on 18 models.

Mestas hopes that both technology like OnStar and more police aircraft can minimize the dangers of chases.

"It would be nice to have a day in law enforcement that you didn't have to actively pursue suspects at high speeds," she said.

BrianCunningham wrote:
GM's actually running an Ad on TV featuring that.

But if I do go with a new Chevy truck, I'll opt out of the OnStar option.

TommyT-Bone wrote:
Quote:

BrianCunningham wrote:
GM's actually running an Ad on TV featuring that.

But if I do go with a new Chevy truck, I'll opt out of the OnStar option.

Wanted for something ?

biggrizzly wrote:

In the case here, I think the owner gave permission. I'd do the same thing. I'm not a bleeding heart liberal by any means, but technology like this can be used to effectively shut down the Bad Guy is good by me. I guess I have worked in a law enforcement organization too long, but there are way too many BGs out there and any tool the LE can use without infringing on my personal rights and space to assist them in thier work is ok by me.

CentralCoaster wrote:
Quote:

biggrizzly wrote:

In the case here, I think the owner gave permission. I'd do the same thing. I'm not a bleeding heart liberal by any means, but technology like this can be used to effectively shut down the Bad Guy is good by me. I guess I have worked in a law enforcement organization too long, but there are way too many BGs out there and any tool the LE can use without infringing on my personal rights and space to assist them in thier work is ok by me.

Technology is always pushed under the guise of "getting the bad guy". But soon enough it starts infringing on your rights.

If you are speeding, doesn't that make you "the bad guy"? The cops should just disable your car to ticket you rather than risk a high speed chase or injury. If the cops have that ability, and do not use it, and someone rich/important gets killed, maybe there'll be a lawsuit to impel them.

"If it only saves one life..."

TommyT-Bone wrote:
If OnStar has that capability I'd want the shut down at my discretion not the police's. That's just as bad as the the computer evidence admitted in high speed accidents recorded on impact. It's my car, that should be my computer and my information it's storing. If cops are going to use that to stop thieves they should be paying me an access fee.

TommyT-Bone wrote:
If OnStar has that capability I'd want the shut down at my discretion not the police's. That's just as bad as the the computer evidence admitted in high speed accidents recorded on impact. It's my car, that should be my computer and my information it's storing. If cops are going to use that to stop thieves they should be paying me an access fee.

TommyT-Bone wrote:
Thanks for clearing that up for me. If the prosecution wants evidence they can always get a warrant. It's like the hard drive on your computer. You have tons of stored information there. Many a felon has been given free accomodations from evidence retreived from their trusty laptop. home computer or cellphone. I have never had that experience because I don't think like a felon but there are plenty that do.

SpectatorRacing wrote:

Vehicle Event Data Recorders (EDRs), commonly referred to as Black Boxes, are part of
a vehicle’s airbag control module or powertrain control module...

With this updated ruling, it stands to become an indispensible resource for accident
reconstructionists, law enforcement officials and insurance investigators.

CentralCoaster wrote:


And there again is the slippery slope Matatk. This stuff was originally used to datalog and help diagnose and repair the vehicle. Now it's become an indispensible resource for everyone but you. They've used that data to void factory warranties also.

What if the sensors aren't correct in a crash? If it's the same type sensors that cause Prius's to start up and accelerate through people's garage doors on occasion, then I don't want to be in court in a he-said-she-said against a computer.

CentralCoaster wrote:

It's a rhetorical question though, we don't really have a choice to begin with.

Do you mind if I sit in the backseat of your car and follow you around all day and maybe sift through your file drawer while I'm at it?

Durango_Boy wrote:
So this won't work on previous OnStar equipped cars and trucks...previous to '09 I mean.

JrRifleCoach wrote:
Quote:

Durango_Boy wrote:
So this won't work on previous OnStar equipped cars and trucks...previous to '09 I mean.

As I understand the package, OnStar can control all electronic operations. Including older models as well.
OBD3 will have satellite link capabilities and coupled with OnStar should be another reason to not crush your old "clunkers".

We now really live in an "Orwelian World"

The Poice wear black skimasks and helmets reminisent of WW2
The light poles have cameras taking your picture and recording your every move.
The satellites can video record to play back your activities.
We have GPS tracking devices in out phones and soon our bodies.
Our cars can be remote controlled.
Our remote aerial drones can deliver smart munitions anywhere in the world.
Our government can listen in on our conversations and read our email.
Our homes talk to the utility companies and thus the govt.

Like CC said....we don't really have a choice to begin with.



.

SpectatorRacing wrote:

Unless you commit a crime, are on TV, are high up in politics, or have more than a few hundred million dollars in the bank, then I can assure you - nobody is watching.

JrRifleCoach wrote:

Like CC said....we don't really have a choice to begin with.

Like CC said....we don't really have a choice to begin with.

bobges wrote:
I like your attitude Kevin let me help out with a different view, in New Jersey there are over a hundred ways they can suspend you drivers license for reasons that are not related to driving, one example not paying child support,I'll stop there and see if some one can piece it together

CentralCoaster wrote:
I'll remember that next time I'm being searched at the airport. It's necessary so you don't have to eat beetles.