A 14-minute freeway chase from Valencia to Van Nuys ended today when a CHP officer used his squad car to spin the fleeing vehicle.
The action, called a Precision Immobilization Technique or PIT maneuver, is a pursuit tactic where a pursing car nudges the fleeing car to abruptly turn it sideways, causing the driver to lose control and stop.
A black Volkswagen GTI had been signaled to pull over for an undisclosed reason at 6:56 a.m. on the southbound Golden State (5) Freeway at Calgrove Boulevard in the Valencia section of Santa Clarita, said CHP Officer Tony Polizzi.
The chase went through Newhall Pass and then onto the San Diego (405) Freeway, across the San Fernando Valley. At about 7:10 a.m. the motorist exited at Burbank Boulevard and turned west, driving on Burbank through the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area.
At the fourth signal, Balboa Boulevard, the CHP officer executed the PIT maneuver and it spun out. The driver, who was the only person in the VW, was arrested, Polizzi said. No injuries were reported.
