The United States Supreme court has sided with a former Georgia sheriff’s deputy … saying police officers can risk the life of a fleeing suspect to end a high-speed car chase. The Columbus-Ledger Enquirer reports that yesterday the court ruled 8 to 1 in the case of Coweta County deputy Timothy Scott. Scott rammed a fleeing car driven by 19-year-old Victor Harris … who ended up paralyzed when the car went into a ditch. In the majority opinion, Justice Antonin Scalia wrote, “A police officer’s attempt to terminate a dangerous high-speed car chase that threatens the lives of innocent bystanders does not violate the Fourth Amendment, even when it places the fleeing motorist at risk of serious injury or death.” The Fourth Amendment protects Americans’ from unreasonable police searches and seizures.
