We have all seen in the movies or on television the car chase, where the police attempt to pull over the speeding vehicle that flees up the road. Such chases often end in a roadblock, where finally the police block the roadway to stop the vehicle from escaping. We may also remember the scene where the officer orders a passing motorist out of her car and commandeers it to chase the perpetrator. Maryland law addresses what happens when the cars of ordinary citizens become involved in this type of situation, as Maryland’s highest court recently explained in the case of Charles County v. Johnson.
The opinion relates that an SUV became involved in a high speed chase with the police on Route 301 in Charles County. When several police cars were unable to get the driver to pull over, they radioed ahead to set up a roadblock using “stop sticks.” These are devices with spikes in them which can be spread across the road, and puncture the tires of an approaching vehicle thereby slowly deflating them and forcing the vehicle to stop.
Four police cars with their lights activated were stopped at an intersection, and two officers were out of the vehicles awaiting the approaching SUV. About ten cars of civilians, when they saw the police activity, also stopped at the intersection, effectively blocking the northbound lanes. The police put their stop sticks on the shoulder, thinking that to be the only means of escape, but the SUV driver struck several of the civilian vehicles before becoming airborne and stopping. Mr. Johnson was the driver of one of those cars, and he was so severely injured that he lapsed into a coma and died 18 months later.
Mrs. Johnson brought suit against the SUV driver and the County for damages arising from injury to and death of her husband. She relied upon two statutes in the Maryland law that address this situation. The first, Section 19-101 of the Transportation Article, provides that a county is liable for damages due to the negligence of its police officer where the officer directs the driver of a non-police vehicle to assist in enforcement of the law or apprehension of a suspect. Section 102 provides that the police may not direct a driver of a civilian vehicle to assist in setting up a roadblock, and if they do the county or State who employs the officer is liable for injuries that result if they do.
The trial court ruled against Mrs. Johnson as a matter of law, holding that on the facts alleged there was no evidence that the police ordered Mr. Johnson to participate in a roadblock or to assist in attempting to apprehend the driver. Maryland’s highest court reversed and ordered a trial. The court found that there was a dispute between the recollection of some of the officers, and two civilian witnesses as to exactly how the scene appeared when the private vehicles stopped at the intersection. It noted that a reasonable jury could find that a person coming upon these police vehicles and officers may reasonably have concluded that they were required to stop there in the road, effectively serving as a roadblock for the police activity.
It remains to be seen whether Mrs. Johnson can prove that the officers were negligent and therefore violated the statute, or whether these facts show in effect a commandeering of a vehicle to impose liability on the County.