L.A.: Proud Home Of The Car Chase

"Tad Friend writes about the phenomenon of police car chases in Los Angeles: why they are so common, why they appear on television so regularly, and what they mean to the city."

"There are several reasons for the prevalence of 'pursuits.' First, L.A. has a strong car culture. Its residents spend so much time in their cars that they’re like second homes, and nobody likes to be told what to do in his own home. Second, the county has some twenty-two thousand miles of highways and streets, and this gives a suspect the illusion of endless escape routes. Third, local police forces have been much quicker to initiate pursuits than many municipal forces. (In Baltimore, for instance, pursuits have been banned for decades.) And then there is Los Angeles County Sheriff Leroy Baca’s theory: 'We have more idiots here than anywhere else.'"