Capt. Steve Andelman said he tried to stop a police pursuit because the incident involved a theft and not a violent crime. He said his order was immediately overridden and resulted in a crash.
“The suspects in the vehicle sustained substantial injuries, and it is simply fortuitous that no other vehicles or pedestrians were involved,” the suit said.
A pattern of mistreatment began even as Andelman wrote D.C. Police Chief Robert J. Contee III to express his concerns, the suit alleged. A superior accused Andelman “of calling off a legitimate pursuit” and “attacked his credibility, reputation, work performance and stated that he planned to discipline Cpt. Andelman because of his actions.”When Andelman sought a transfer out of the Second District, the request was denied, the lawsuit said.
In an interview, Andelman said D.C. police policy allows pursuit in “extremely limited” circumstances. He said that the disagreement was not the result of a personality clash but was an “abuse of power.”“Being a commander, you should probably know more than anyone else,” he said. “It’s just a miracle that no one was killed.”