- Arkansas police pursuits hit a six-year low in 2025.
- Fatalities during chases reached a decade high last year.
- Nearly half of 2025’s chase deaths were vehicle passengers.
Arkansas State Police chases have long drawn attention for tactics some critics call overly aggressive. Whether seen as daring or downright reckless, the agency’s approach continues to stir plenty of debate.
Now, new data shows that while chases are dropping in the Natural State, deaths just hit a new high. Despite that, the figure is likely lower than most would assume, and yet data from the last decade paints a more complicated and uncomfortable picture.
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In 2025, Arkansas State Police (ASP) troopers were involved in 432 pursuits, the lowest number since 2019 and a sharp drop from 553 the year before. But fewer chases didn’t mean fewer consequences. Seven people died, making it the deadliest year for ASP pursuits in at least a decade. The contrast is jarring, though the full picture is more complicated than the numbers alone suggest.
When Less Still Feels Like More
Data obtained by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette shows that from 2016 through the end of 2025, ASP logged 4,710 pursuits. Across all of those incidents, 27 people died, and 774 were injured, including 91 law enforcement officers. Broken down further, that means that 0.6 percent of chases resulted in a fatality. Roughly 16 percent resulted in an injury, and officers get hurt just under two times on average for every 100 chases.
Those figures may surprise readers who assume police chases routinely end in death. Statistically, they don’t. Most pursuits conclude without fatalities, and many end without serious injury at all. That said, statistics don’t erase consequences… especially when ASP has pitted the wrong people and even some who were fully complying with the law.
Collateral Damage
Nearly half of those killed last year, three out of seven, were passengers, not the drivers who chose to flee. In several cases, those passengers were ejected during crashes following PIT maneuvers, a tactic ASP used in over half of the chases it engaged in. It underscores the point that the people paying the consequences of high-speed pursuits aren’t just those who choose to run.
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State police leadership maintains that PIT is the fastest and safest way to end dangerous chases. Col. Mike Hagar has consistently placed responsibility for fatal outcomes squarely on fleeing drivers, arguing troopers are obligated to stop suspects as quickly as possible once flight is established.
Necessary Risk or Outdated Habit?
As we’ve covered in the past, officers’ view of chases is often that they’re a necessary evil. One told us that “Early in my career, I loved them. Later in my career, I dreaded them. They’re one of the most exciting and fun parts of the job, but also one of the most dangerous and nerve-racking.”
Another said, “I have been party to a chase that ended in life-altering injury to an innocent woman and her children, and the death of the person fleeing. The chase was initiated for a traffic offense. In other words, I understand restrictive policies.”
Read: What Officers Really Think About High-Speed Pursuits Might Surprise You
Still, the 2025 data raises hard questions. If pursuits are declining, but fatalities spike, and passengers (and sometimes bystanders) are disproportionately affected, it’s fair to ask whether tactics, thresholds, and risk calculations deserve additional scrutiny.
The numbers don’t tell a simple story. But they do remind us of two truths that can coexist. Most pursuits don’t end in tragedy, and every loss of life, especially unintended ones, demands reflection, not just justification.