That traffic stop would have worked out better if it was conducted by a social worker or unit trained to ask……License and Registration please
I can't say that for sure.
See that article states, that the person driving, was driving erratically. We only have body cam footage of the officers getting out of their cars, and taking him down the first time, and after he ran.
I have a sneaking suspicion, that he did not immediately pull over, otherwise, it WOULD HAVE been, just a "license and registration please," type of situation. But then, this is just my speculation, given the description of WHY he was pulled over, and the number of units on the scene, when he finally DID pull over.
My suspicion is, he was far too high/drunk, to actually decide that he could give the department a high speed chase. Most police do not pull suspects out of the car, and first thing, put them down on the ground. . .
I suspect, that his behavior on the road, was a lethal danger to the community, and the police were pissed about ONE; the length of time it took him to stop, get out of the car, and comply, and TWO; that someone would make such a poor decision to be driving and endangering their community and loved ones, by driving in that condition in the first place.
. . . with that said? YES, police are generally not the first people to understand why folks abuse drugs to escape the pain of life, and/or make these sorts of selfish and poor decisions. Their job is to prioritize protecting the community. They don't give a shit about. . . "reasons." Many of them have a military background, and empathy is a foreign concept. This guy, to them, is a meat sack, who forfeited his right to life when he become a danger to innocent women and children in the community.