UNCW police chief: "The chase should have never happened" | News

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) – The chief of police at UNCW is speaking out about a recent chase on campus that happened in broad daylight.

WECT.com first reported that an officer chased after two people on a moped on one of UNCW's most heavily traveled thoroughfares, which is called Chancellor's Walk.

UNCW Police Chief David Donaldson said the chase was against the university's pursuit policy.

"The chase should have never happened," said Donaldson.

Donaldson called it a "learning experience."

According to the chief, UNCW officer Nathan Hodge started chasing a moped when he realized it didn't have license plate and the people on the bike were not wearing helmets.

The chief said a minor traffic violation like that does not call for a pursuit and is in violation of their policy.

A supervisor at UNCW called Hodge off of the chase after he learned what was going on along Chancellor's Walk.

WECT.com dug further into the investigation and found there were some discrepancies in the incident report after the chase.

The dash cam in Hodge's patrol car recorded the officer traveling at a different speed than what he originally indicated on the incident report.

Donaldson said patrol car dash cams are not calibrated the same way a radar gun is when used to track speeding so he had no comment on why Hodge's speed did not match up with the dash cam.

"Officers have a great responsibility and among those is to recognize the circumstances where they should disengage and not become a part of a potential problem," he said.

Donaldson said he has had a conversation with Hodge and has addressed the incident with his entire force.

"We recognize this as a teachable moment and we continue to review our policies and we have met with the officer and other staff members are aware of the situation and we're comfortable with the steps we have taken," he said.

The investigation is closed, according to UNCW officials.

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