Suffolk sheriff tests GPS darts to track fleeing cars safely

A DWI arrest in East Patchogue became Suffolk County’s first use of a GPS-dart system that lets deputies tag a fleeing vehicle and track it on a screen instead of launching a high-speed chase. The suspect refused to yield and was later charged with aggravated DWI, giving Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr. a case study for the tool he says could keep officers, drivers and bystanders out of danger.

The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office began rolling out the StarChase system on March 24, and officials showed it publicly on April 23 as a first-of-its-kind pilot in the county. The technology is now being used by the sheriff’s DWI enforcement team, which county officials say makes Suffolk the first law enforcement agency in the county to test it. Toulon tied the launch to warmer weather and the seasonal rise in suspected drunk-driving crashes and pursuits on Long Island.

The launcher sits in a patrol vehicle’s grille and can fire a small adhesive GPS tag from inside or outside the car using a remote. Once a tag sticks to a suspect vehicle, StarChase says it sends location updates every three to five seconds, along with speed and direction, so deputies can follow without crowding the vehicle or forcing a dangerous stop. The company says the system is meant to let officers tag, track and locate a suspect in real time without a pursuit.

County officials said the equipment costs about $9,000 per vehicle, including installation, and the sheriff’s office paid for it through its operating budget. Officials would not say how many patrol cars are equipped with the system, even as they described the pilot as a measured response to what they said were dozens of attempted escapes over the past year.

The public-safety argument is clear: fewer chases can mean fewer crashes, especially when impaired drivers are involved. But the privacy debate is just as real. StarChase markets the system as a non-lethal alternative to dangerous pursuits and says it has produced an 85% apprehension rate, while civil-liberties advocates in other states have raised concerns about warrantless vehicle tracking in some uses. Suffolk has not said how often deputies may deploy the technology or what limits will govern its use as the pilot expands.

For now, Toulon is casting the system as a way to make a commute safer without putting more people in the path of a fleeing car. He also urged drivers to plan ahead, use ride shares and avoid getting behind the wheel impaired.