Overview
- Suffolk County’s sheriff’s office, which staged a public demonstration Thursday at its Yaphank facility, is piloting StarChase with its DWI unit after beginning field use on March 24.
- The system mounts a launcher in a patrol car’s grille that fires an adhesive GPS tag, letting deputies disengage from a chase while dispatch tracks the car’s real-time location.
- Deputies used the tech on April 1 during a pursuit in East Patchogue, and the tagged driver was later arrested on an aggravated DWI charge.
- Each equipped vehicle costs about $9,000, and the sheriff declined to say how many cars carry the system, citing tactical reasons.
- Officials highlight safety after past crashes, including one that nearly killed Officer Brendon Gallagher, and say the pilot could expand as groups like MADD back the tool.