Al's Morning Meeting

Cans of formula such as Similac, which may sell for $25 each, can be marked up and fenced on Internet black markets, according to the National Retail Federation. An FBI assistant director told a congressional subcommittee last year that the retail industry loses between $15 billion and $30 billion annually from stolen items such as infant formula, over-the-counter medication and beauty supplies.

While foot pursuits by police are common and often depicted heroically on TV reality shows such as "Cops," some experts argue they should be strictly limited.

"An officer who is in a foot pursuit often has a high level of drive and adrenaline," said Merrick Bob[b], a special counsel who monitors the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

Officers in the heat of a chase without backup may make poor tactical decisions, putting themselves at risk of ambush or solo hand-to-hand combat after an exhausting pursuit, said Bobb, who successfully pushed for rules banning almost all foot pursuits by solo Los Angeles deputies. The rules emphasize using multiple deputies to contain a fleeing suspect, with the help of a helicopter if necessary.

During its investigation, the AJC analyzed DeKalb cases involving use of force from 2001 through 2006.

During that time, 33 suspects were shot to death by police. Four of the shootings -- or 12 percent -- involved foot pursuits.

The AJC also learned that DeKalb County may be unique among large local police departments in that it has a written policy on foot pursuits. Spokesmen for Atlanta, Cobb, Fulton and Gwinnett police said they have no such policy.

But the DeKalb policy does not conform to the limits recommended in a model policy drafted by the International Association of Chiefs of Police, which closely resembles the Los Angeles rules in severely limiting solo pursuits.

The vast majority of foot chases, of course, do not end in death.

And statistically speaking, they don't seem particularly dangerous compared to other police procedures, said Robert Kaminski, an assistant professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of South Carolina who surveyed foot chases in Richland County, S.C.

Kaminski estimated the average Richland deputy conducted more than four foot pursuits per year and that no more than one in 50,000 foot pursuits in that department ended in an officer's death.

But statistics also played a role in creating restrictions on foot chases in the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

Bobb, the department's monitor, reported that from 1997 to 2002, foot chases accounted for 22 percent of shootings by police.

"When faced with a suspect who is running away, many deputies do not weigh the risks involved before giving chase," Bobb wrote in a report to Los Angeles County officials. "Some give in to competitive instincts: they want to demonstrate that no one escapes from them."

He and other researchers say proof that the new techniques work can be found in Collingswood, N.J., where officials imposed limits on foot pursuits in 1998. A study found officer injuries declined without an increase in fleeing suspects getting away.

But the limits on foot chases remain unpopular with Los Angeles deputies.

In a January article in the Los Angeles Times, Roy Burns, a past president of the county deputies' union, said, "This is all about, 'We're afraid you're going to get hurt.' But you know what? That's part of the job."