Deputies, officers kept their cool during chase
Podcast Episode
Rock County Sheriff Bob Spoden reviews the actions of officers during the chase of a shooting suspect.
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JANESVILLE — Sophie Henschler has seen a lot of things in her 94 years, but she never saw anything like what she witnessed Wednesday as she left the Mercy Health System complex on Janesville's west side.
"The cops were coming out of cars like ladybugs coming out of the woodwork," she said. "Everyone was running around with guns."
Henschler of La Prairie Township witnessed the end of one of the most bizarre high-speed chases in memory when she saw police arrest murder suspect Kyle E. Hicke on Wednesday.
The half-hour chase, which reached speeds of 90 mph, went from Janesville to Beloit and back again and involved four law enforcement jurisdictions.
It started at 9:25 a.m., shortly after a shooting at 412 1/2 S. Academy St., Janesville. Deputy Ben Riemer of the Rock County Sheriff's Office saw a pickup truck matching the description of the suspect's vehicle going south on Highway 51 near Highway 11, Sheriff Bob Spoden said.
He followed the vehicle for about three miles, radioing information back to the department as he waited for more units to back him up for a "high-risk" traffic stop.
A town of Beloit squad arrived, and Riemer attempted to pull over the truck. Hicke stepped on the gas, driving south into the city of Beloit with officers in pursuit.
Police try to avoid high-speed pursuits in cities, but it couldn't be helped in this case, Spoden said. Hicke is suspected of shooting his ex-girlfriend, and he still had a gun in the car.
"There really was no question on this issue," he said.
Beloit police laid out stop sticks—spikes designed to puncture tires—in two places, said Capt. Bill Tyler of the Beloit Police Department. In one case, Hicke drove into oncoming traffic to avoid the sticks; in the other, the sticks failed to stop him.
"When he's driving that fast and driving recklessly, it's hard to tell if he drove over them or not," Tyler said.
Hicke drove through downtown Beloit at speeds reaching 50 mph before reversing direction and driving north on Highway 51, eventually making it back to the crime scene.
Along the way, he tossed a gun out the window and purposely sideswiped a Rock County squad car.
When Hicke reached Janesville, sheriff's office and Janesville police officials decided to ram his vehicle.
"In this case, because of the violent crime that was committed, the fact that the suspect would not stop and at times would go into other lanes of traffic, as well as the speeds of the pursuit involved, it was decided that the vehicle had to be brought to a stop," said Capt. Jude Maurer, who monitored the chase for the sheriff's office.
Officers tried to ram the vehicle at Academy and Racine streets and Milwaukee and Jackson streets, Dave Moore, acting Janesville police chief, said at a news conference Wednesday afternoon. Two Janesville squads collided at Milwaukee and Jackson in the attempt.
Meanwhile, Hicke drove past the crime scene twice, flipping his middle finger to police, neighbors and media nearby.
Finally, a Janesville squad rammed the truck from the front at Madison Street and Mineral Point Avenue, causing the truck to spin around and hit a Rock County squad behind. No officers were injured.
Hicke was apprehended at gunpoint at 9:49 a.m. He was taken to Mercy Hospital with minor injuries, Moore said.
The fact that Hicke tossed a gun out on his way to Janesville didn't change law enforcement's approach, Spoden said.
"Because one gun was thrown out, it doesn't mean he's unarmed," Spoden said. "You just don't know."
Besides, the suspect still had one huge weapon: his pickup truck, said Commander Troy Knudson of the sheriff's office.
"He really demonstrated just how dangerous he was in his attempt to use a truck to ram our squad car," he said.
The chase might have seemed long, but officials had to take many factors into consideration before ramming the vehicle, Knudson said.
Ramming is considered deadly force, he said. The risks are high, especially when it involves a full-size pickup truck versus a sedan.
"At the initial stage of the chase, one attempts to resolve it using the least force necessary," he said.
Spoden and Moore said they were proud of the job their officers did. Officers stayed calm, communicated clearly and performed their roles correctly, Spoden said.
"I couldn't be prouder of the way the sheriff's deputies conducted themselves," Spoden said. "It really speaks of the professionalism, not only of the sheriff's office, but all the agencies involved."
Chase policies
The Rock County Sheriff's Office and Janesville Police Department have pages of documents listing criteria for high-speed pursuits and associated maneuvers.
The case of Kyle E. Hicke, who led police on a high-speed chase from Beloit Township to the city of Beloit and north again to Janesville, met all the criteria.
Here's a summary of the sheriff's office and Janesville police policies:
Pursuit
Rock County: Deputies shall pursue any subject in a vehicle who they believe has committed or attempted to commit a serious felony or is driving in a manner that could cause death or great bodily harm.
Deputies shall stop the pursuit when they believe the pursuit creates a higher risk of death or great bodily harm than would exist if the suspect was not apprehended.
If deputies believe the subject has committed a less serious felony, traffic crime or misdemeanor, they may pursue the subject unless they know the identity of the suspect or have enough information to identify and apprehend the suspect later.
The act of fleeing an officer in and of itself does not justify a pursuit.
Janesville: High-speed pursuits should be attempted only when the danger created by the possible escape of the suspect outweighs the danger created by the pursuit and no reasonable alternative exists. The seriousness of the crime committed and the continuing threat to the public posed by the suspect are of primary consideration in making this decision.
The department has a matrix taking into account the seriousness of the crime and the risk factors to help officers decide when to pursue.
Ramming
Rock County: Ramming may be used to prevent the escape or flight of a person who, if allowed to escape, poses a significant threat of death or great bodily harm to deputies or the public. It may be used only after all lesser means of apprehension have been eliminated. It may not be used if deputies believe the act of ramming creates a higher risk of death or great bodily harm than not apprehending the suspect.
Janesville: Ramming is considered deadly force. Deadly force may be used in defense of the officer, in defense of another person or to arrest a person suspected of a violent felony if the officer believes the suspect can't be apprehended later.
Apr 25, 2009 at 11:57 p.m.
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Re: In one case, Hicke drove into oncoming traffic to avoid the sticks; in the other, the sticks failed to stop him.
"When he's driving that fast and driving recklessly, it's hard to tell if he drove over them or not," Tyler said.
(...Does anyone else NOT get this 'hard to tell' response, besides me? :)
Apr 24, 2009 at 6:06 p.m.
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I hope that the Gazette will request and post an audio copy of the 911 radio transmissions that were broadcast during this chase rather than just cooing away at the superficial spoon-feeding it so often seems to accept.
While all the facts are not out, indications of the information made available thus far suggest that allowing this chase to run at that time of day for the distance and time that it went, including allowing the suspect to CIRCLE THE CRIME SCENE TWICE, created an unacceptably high degree of very real danger to the public.
The fact that it finally ended without additional injury appears to owe more to chance than to the appropriate, timely dissemination of information and the resultant decisions and coordinated actions on the part of 911 and law enforcement.
Have we created a public safety system that is hobbled and afraid to make effective, real-time decisions on the fly for fear of subsequent arm-chair analysis by people who sit safely in their offices? We need to rely on more than chance and luck, as both have a tendency to run against us at inopportune moments!
Apr 24, 2009 at 5:40 p.m.
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yes i think title is Chicago women dies....
Apr 24, 2009 at 8:36 a.m.
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A bit off topic, but was there anything in the Gazette about a fatal motorccle accident on a interstate ramp this week? This is the first I heard of it.
http://www.madison.com/tct/news/448416
Apr 24, 2009 at 8:24 a.m.
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No doubt.
Let's not focus on catching a murderer, here. Let's focus on the pedestrians and the motorists who are daydreaming, texting, or doing whatever.
Wow. What mental midgets.
Apr 24, 2009 at 8:03 a.m.
Apr 24, 2009 at 8:02 a.m.
Apr 24, 2009 at 1:09 a.m.
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Now if only WI had the death penalty. Instead the taxpayers get to house and feed him for life, while he gets a college degree and if he is like many prisoners, will file several lawsuits regarding his treatment and living conditions while confined.
Apr 23, 2009 at 9:45 p.m.
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Great job officers! I certainly don't take these guys and gals for granted.. Thank you.
Apr 23, 2009 at 9:31 p.m.
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If the police car was ACTUALLY doing 80 down center avenue, imagine the outcry if they hit a confused pedestrian or driver. I don't care how careful you are or how loud the siren is, a car coming that fast from behind in a 35mph zone can startle ANYONE.
Apr 23, 2009 at 8:54 p.m.
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Yes, truthteller. One moron motorist on his cellphone, not paying attention to his surroundings, could have gotten creamed.
Apr 23, 2009 at 8:24 p.m.
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too bad he didn't ("allegedly") commit the crime in IL. They have the correct punishment for such crimes.
Everyone is correct that dispatch, & officers all did a wonderful job. But there's someone (or more then one) being left out. The ones who gave the dispatch the information to give to the officers on the street. If good information wasn't give to dispatch quickly... the guy would have gotten away into IL.
And it would have been useless for him to go into IL, being already chased. There's no way he wouldn't have gotten caught there because i;'ll guarantee you the dispatch had already thought of that & prepared for it. I find that bordering states work really well together. All he would have benefited was (maybe) going through extradition.. & IL would have worked quickly to get a judge to sign papers for that. Might have bought him a week or two. He was going to jail that day
Apr 23, 2009 at 7:59 p.m.
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Yes truthteller, it was really dangerous and stupid of the suspect to go speeding around two cities like he did. That is why the law enforcement officers did their job and took the action they did and rammed his truck, thereby apprehending him and stopping it.
Apr 23, 2009 at 6:34 p.m.
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officerfriendly1 I really don't no .
Apr 23, 2009 at 6:26 p.m.
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I saw one Rock County come flying down center avenue through traffic in a Tahoe/Suburban. He must have been going 80+ mph. One wrong move by a motorist not seeing this guy could have caused a few more fatalities. This was really dangerous and stupid to drive like that.
Apr 23, 2009 at 6:07 p.m.
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I just have one question. Did the Town of Beloit PD have D&J's tow the truck?
Apr 23, 2009 at 5:32 p.m.
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SarahB1 your post is right on the money . i don't think people know just how important Dispatch really is .
Apr 23, 2009 at 3:27 p.m.
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Great job by all area law enforcement teams. I wonder if the suspect purposely (or just by chance) decided not to cross the stateline into Illinois? He was only a block or so away when he turned east onto Broad Street in Beloit. Again, great work and a big thank you to the officers and the dispatch team.
Apr 23, 2009 at 3:14 p.m.
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SuperDave
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:05 a.m.
Suggest removal Kudos to all law enforcement personnel involved. I don't see how you could have done a better job! Thank you.
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Whats up SuperDave a polite post, WOW being nice really isn't too hard is it .
Apr 23, 2009 at 1:47 p.m.
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Officers did great...way to go!...I just hope 'others' realize sometimes action needs to be taken sooner than later. This guy probably should not have made back into the city, where lots of potential victims are waiting. Use of force on subjects is such a hot button, and I don't think it should be...as long as it's justified.
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So officers chasing this guy not only handled their incident very well, but coordinated it well with their policies and the directives being given over the radio. Officers don't get enough credit for walking this kind of tight-rope. Good job!
Apr 23, 2009 at 1:38 p.m.
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I am thankful that I was lead by some force of God to not leave my home by the Job Center. i thank God for the law enforcement teams that place their lives on the line for situations such as this.
A lot of people seem to overlook that law enforcement really are awesome. They place their lives on the line every time they take on their roles in law enforcement.
True there are some bad apples, but those bad apples are everywhere in every profession.
I thank you law enforcement teams from Jville, Rock County, Town of Beloit, and City of Beloit (and any others that I may have overlooked). You are a true inspiration in what you give up for the good of society!
I just love knowing that there are those out there willing to protect and serve! Fire and Rescue, police, and military personnel are my heroes for their unending dedication!
Apr 23, 2009 at 1:09 p.m.
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A job well done!
Apr 23, 2009 at 1:01 p.m.
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I'm SO proud to be from Janesville. I have friends who are both with the county and city, and I'm honored to be able to call them my friends. Keep up the good work! Watch out bad guys!!!
Apr 23, 2009 at 12:25 p.m.
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About stop sticks: let us not forget the Dane County Deputy who is now paralyzed and unemployed because the schmuck he was using the stop sticks on swerved to miss them and hit him instead.
Apr 23, 2009 at 12:23 p.m.
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Bravo! As tempting as deadly force is, I'm glad they didn't kill this jerk. That would have been the easy way out and possibly wouldn't have given the family closure.
My only sracastic remark is couldn't they have sacrificed a soon-to-be retired Crown Vic instead of the new Charger--which look very tough and sleek!
Way to go JPD, RCSD, BPD, MPD and any other agencies that were involved! You earned your pay and then some yesterday!
Apr 23, 2009 at 12:22 p.m.
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Stop Sticks are about $380 per set, with five years of replacement materials. There is also a training component as they can be hazardous to deploy. Janesville probably didn't have multiple sets because they are used so rarely.
Apr 23, 2009 at 12:04 p.m.
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They should have given that reporter a gun vs. the camera he had when he shot the bird flip.
What are CRIMIANLS? Are they like Granimals?
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:51 a.m.
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My only problem is not with any of the officers, but I believe that fleeing in and of itself justifies a chase. Too many people second-guess officers and while it is really unfortunate when an innocent gets hurt, it is, in reality the fault of the one that fled.
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:45 a.m.
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to bad they couldnt have just shot him right away and be done with it. but yes we have to protect the CRIMIANLS.
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:44 a.m.
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I agree with the stop stick issue. Looking at the map he drove a LONG way. He must have some crazy good stoned driving skills.
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:32 a.m.
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Thanks to all the officers and departments involved in this matter. I believe they did the right things at the right times. My only question after listening to the chase on the scanner, is why don't we equip ALL our squad cars with stop sticks? Every car in the county should have a set. From what I heard there was only one set available in Janesville, and they were calling in Milton who had a set, but the chase ended before that car got close. The price of a set of sticks has to be less than the repair bill for the county's Dodge, or the city's Chevy. Again - no complaints against those involved- they did the best they could with what they had.
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:05 a.m.
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I am happy to say I am very grateful to our police departments for yesterday and every day great job.
Apr 23, 2009 at 11:05 a.m.
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Kudos to all law enforcement personnel involved. I don't see how you could have done a better job! Thank you.
Apr 23, 2009 at 10:58 a.m.
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Makes me sleep better at night knowing we have this wonderful group of police officers at our back. Good job, officers.
Apr 23, 2009 at 10:48 a.m.
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Thank you for risking your lives, officers, to take garbage like this off the streets. Shame deadly force wasn't done, though.
Apr 23, 2009 at 10:34 a.m.
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The JPD is a class act-They did everything right and it showed. So glad none of the officers got hurt. They took a dangerous man off the streets. THANK YOU for your service.
Apr 23, 2009 at 10:22 a.m.
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Yes, nice job, as usual.
Apr 23, 2009 at 10:13 a.m.
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Good job officers. I'm so glad you weren't injured.
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