Op Hercules West Mid police preemptively using stingers

[cootuk]

1. OPHERCULES -

West Midlands Police are now deploying stingers pre-emptively for vehicles they see street racing in order to protect the public. This could be rolled out nationwide.

A BMW M135 has been stung at the owners own cost & he will be prosecuted for multiple offences. Street racing will not be tolerated.

[carreauchompeur]

Good. If there are confirmed offences then it avoids the risk of a pursuit. Pre-emptive always best.

[BertBert]

what does pre-emptive mean in this case? Before an offence has been committed?

[Super Sonic]

Before a chase ensues.

[cootuk]

As it says, if vehicles are observed street racing, then stingers could be used as a first measure. Obvious marked deployment could also block access or egress if not used directly on a vehicle.

[98elise]

carreauchompeur said:

Good. If there are confirmed offences then it avoids the risk of a pursuit. Pre-emptive always best.

Agreed. Sounds like a good idea.

If someone thinks it's fine to race on public loads, then it's likely will think its fine to run from the police.

[98elise]

EmailAddress said:

How does that work then. Why has this not always been policy.

Sounds a bit Minority Report.

Or is it the usual 'loud exhaust / traffic light launch'

<pwoosh pwoosh pwoosh pwoosh>

That'll be £800 son.

Not really minority report if you've seem somebody committing an offence

cootuk said:

...for vehicles they see street racing in order to protect the public.

To me it sounds a bit like the tactical contacts used to stop illegal bikes. An offence has been committed and they are preventing it escalating.

[98elise]

EmailAddress said:

How is that different to current tactics though?

They are currently used to end a pursuit. This is to prevent one.

Thats what it sounds like anyway.

[cootuk]

I see also quite a few prominent YouTubers who attend meets have been stopped on the way to an organised meet and warned that their vehicle has been flagged on the police comouters, so any observed illegality will be stamped down on. Probs the police watching the YouTube accounts and flagging their registrations for a pull and a quiet word

[BertBert]

It's not preemptive at all. It's just a change of tactics in response to an offense.

Rather than chase, stop with a stinger.

[WolvesWill]

The street racing scene is the west midlands is extremely organised and with the common meeting spots attracting dozens and dozens of spectators and the same number of participating vehicles, at the same few locations week after week. This is not 'just' one or two motors having a quick squirt up a deserted dual carriageway.

Vehicles failing to stop when police go to intervene is generally pretty common, so the use of this tactic to avoid a pursuit is unsurprising.

[snoopy25]

cootuk said:

I see also quite a few prominent YouTubers who attend meets have been stopped on the way to an organised meet and warned that their vehicle has been flagged on the police comouters, so any observed illegality will be stamped down on. Probs the police watching the YouTube accounts and flagging their registrations for a pull and a quiet word

Who else apart from AdamC?

[donkmeister]

98elise said:

EmailAddress said:

How is that different to current tactics though?

They are currently used to end a pursuit. This is to prevent one.

Thats what it sounds like anyway.

That's how I'm reading it too.

I don't think the police are going to be stinging those who just hoofed it a bit hard up a slip road with an optimistic plan to outdrag the car in the next lane (i.e. "I raced a Ferrari in my 320d and won" situations). This is a response to having had so many people decide they didn't want to face the music for being a tit around the town centre/retail park and driving off recklessly... they might still do a runner and later phone their car in as stolen, but better that than killing or injuring someone or ending up as yet another promising footballer, it's all Babylon's fault etc.

[donkmeister]

cootuk said:

I see also quite a few prominent YouTubers who attend meets have been stopped on the way to an organised meet and warned that their vehicle has been flagged on the police comouters, so any observed illegality will be stamped down on. Probs the police watching the YouTube accounts and flagging their registrations for a pull and a quiet word

Meeting. Meet is a verb, meeting is the noun. You meet at a meeting. One doesn't attend a meet, one meets.

This annoys me as much as people saying "invite" when they mean "invitation".

Got that off my chest. Phew.

[Downward]

Pfft most these have st tyres anyway.
Plus just an excuse to put on some more part worns

[NikBartlett]

I would prefer they used RPGs but I guess there is a risk of collateral damage. Perhaps they could use the AGM-114R9X air to ground missile that has pop out blades rather than an explosive charge.

[Austin_Metro]

donkmeister said:

Meeting. Meet is a verb, meeting is the noun. You meet at a meeting. One doesn't attend a meet, one meets.

This annoys me as much as people saying "invite" when they mean "invitation".

Got that off my chest. Phew.

Donkmeister, although I tend to agree with you, you’ve got to let it go.

This evolution of language thing has been happening for a while.

For example, using ‘elbow’ as a verb.

King Lear. 1608.

[donkmeister]

Austin_Metro said:

donkmeister said:

Meeting. Meet is a verb, meeting is the noun. You meet at a meeting. One doesn't attend a meet, one meets.

This annoys me as much as people saying "invite" when they mean "invitation".

Got that off my chest. Phew.

Donkmeister, although I tend to agree with you, you’ve got to let it go.

This evolution of language thing has been happening for a while.

For example, using ‘elbow’ as a verb.

King Lear. 1608.

Clearly you are someone who found peace with the bdisation of language before it caused a coronary event

[Dingu]

donkmeister said:

Austin_Metro said:

donkmeister said:

Meeting. Meet is a verb, meeting is the noun. You meet at a meeting. One doesn't attend a meet, one meets.

This annoys me as much as people saying "invite" when they mean "invitation".

Got that off my chest. Phew.

Donkmeister, although I tend to agree with you, you’ve got to let it go.

This evolution of language thing has been happening for a while.

For example, using ‘elbow’ as a verb.

King Lear. 1608.

Clearly you are someone who found peace with the bdisation of language before it caused a coronary event

I’m can’t believe you use ‘you’, everyone knows it’s ‘Thou’

[BertBert]

I think the OED happily has meet as a noun. Keep up at the back