Three High-Speed Bike Chases Prompt Scrutiny

Three separate high-speed motorcycle and dirt-bike pursuits this week in Austin, Cincinnati and Georgia resulted in one death and multiple serious injuries and have prompted scrutiny of police pursuit tactics. In Austin on Oct. 10, 21-year-old Lorenzo Brant Lemaire led an about 50-minute dirt-bike chase through downtown after a wheelie and running a red light, striking a pedestrian, an Austin police officer and a pedi-cab driver before being arrested at Barton Creek Square Mall and charged with assault on a peace officer, failure to stop and render aid, and evading arrest. In Cincinnati on Oct. 16, the Hamilton County Coroner identified 28-year-old Austin Hust as the motorcyclist who died after crashing during a police pursuit that began when officers responded to reports of a shooting or stabbing in Westwood; a resident from that home was hospitalized and underwent surgery. A viral Georgia video showed a social-media motorcyclist known as “DancingMoto” chased in heavy rain, knocked from his bike after cruisers boxed him in and then struck by an officer’s vehicle; he sustained life-threatening injuries and critics are divided over whether officers used excessive force. Collectively, the incidents underscore the dangers of fleeing law enforcement on two wheels and have prompted calls to review pursuit policies and tactics.