A GPS projectile if fired from the front of a police cruiser in this undated handout photo. A police department in British Columbia's Lower Mainland is using technology that looks like it is taken from the latest Batman movie to track fleeing vehicles.
Image Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Delta Police Department
January 13, 2017 - 2:45 PM
DELTA, B.C. - A police department in British Columbia's Lower Mainland is using technology that looks like it is taken from the latest Batman movie to track fleeing vehicles.
Police in Delta have begun using GPS projectiles fired from the grills of their vehicles to track those who won't stop.
With an increasing number of vehicles fleeing officers, Delta police say they began researching options to deal with the problem early last year.
The police department began working with StarChase Pursuit Management Technology, which has developed a GPS projectile that officers can fire at a vehicle to track its location until it stops.
The Delta Police Foundation agreed to fund the project and over the past several months, the police department began working with the company to equip eight vehicles with the technology.
The department says the projectiles are fired from a compressed air launcher attached to the grill of a police vehicle.
It has been tested, officers have been trained, and the police department says the technology is in place to use.
"We are now looking forward to seeing this technology in action," police Chief Neil Dubord said in a statement.
"However, we do recognize there is no one tool that serves as a 'silver bullet' to solve any one issue. I do believe it is incumbent on us to employ advanced technology options that may assist us in our efforts to be effective at doing our job while mitigating risk to the public."
He says the police department will assess the effectiveness of the projectiles over the next year in tracking fleeing vehicles.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2017