LITTLE ROCK – Some key legislative changes have been enacted to provide the Arkansas State Police (ASP) with a 29% drop in high-speed pursuits from 2023 – 2025. During that time, high-speed pursuits fell from a high of 622 to 432 annually, according to ASP Director, Colonel Mike Hagar. The reduction is primarily due to recent legislative changes and a messaging campaign focused on aggressive intervention.
Acts 734 and 735 of 2023, elevated fleeing from police to a Class D felony charge, formerly a misdemeanor, if the driver exceeds the posted speed limit. Act 822 of 2025 made it a felony for suspects to exit a moving vehicle while fleeing, known as a “tuck and roll”, a tactic where suspects jump from a moving vehicle to escape. This move often occurs during police pursuits and would force officers to stop the chase to secure a driverless vehicle. ASP leaders met with state prosecutors in early 2025, to request that felony fleeing charges no longer be dropped or reduced during plea deals, ensuring more severe consequences for suspects.
Other policies and operational factors have also contributed to the reduction in high-speed pursuits. ASP shifted its pursuit strategy to mandate ending chases as quickly as possible. Troopers were instructed to use Tactical Vehicle Intervention (TVI), also known as a Precision Immobilization Technique (PIT) maneuvers as soon as they determine that a suspect is fleeing. While total pursuits have decreased, the percentage of chases ending in a ramming maneuver rose to 52% in 2025, compared to 29% or less in years prior to 2023. The addition of 120 new troopers has allowed for more proactive enforcement without increasing the overall number of successful fleeing attempts.
Troopers used the ramming technique or PIT maneuver 225 times in 2025, the highest usage since 2016. Col. Mike Hagar, who has led the state police since 2023, said earlier this year that the tactic is the most effective way troopers have of swiftly ending pursuit and that the agency’s use of it won’t change, even if the number of pursuits falls.
In 2023, new ASP public service announcements went out urging drivers to pull over immediately when they see blue lights in the rearview mirror, framing it as a necessary action and warning that fleeing from law enforcement is a felony offense in Arkansas. These announcements detailed increased fleeing penalties and the agency’s messaging campaign that troopers will stop and arrest fleeing drivers by force if necessary. “Fleeing from police is a selfish act that puts innocent motorists at risk and has grave consequences,” Col. Hagar stressed. In 2004, the number of pursuits by state troopers fell to 432 from 553 chases, a decrease reflected in the influence of the changes in the law.
Unfortunately, fatalities from chases have occurred, the overall trend is toward fewer, shorter, and more controlled pursuits due to aggressive and proactive enforcement of the new laws.
