Two people, the suspect and a woman, die in deadly police chase

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CBS, KYMA/KECY) - A deadly police pursuit, which occurred Sunday afternoon in Sacramento, resulted in the deaths of the suspect and a woman after the suspect crashed into the woman's vehicle while trying to get away from the police.

A broken fence and broken glass. That’s what was left from a deadly crash involving a stolen Tesla.

"Our ground units lost them within 30 seconds. We couldn’t keep up," said Sgt. Amar Gandhi of the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office (SCSO).

Gandhi said deputies then pulled off of the chase from the ground and switched to an aerial view, using their helicopter.

"You’re not putting the ground units at risk and you are taking the anxiety level of the person being pursued down," Gandhi explained.

Severity of the crime and risk to the public

But the suspect kept speeding until it crashed with a minivan along Kiefer Boulevard, killing the suspect and a woman in the van.

So how do law enforement officers determine when to pursue a suspect? Gandhi says it comes down to the severity of the crime and the risk to the public.

"You’re going to pursue someone potentially a little bit longer if they are wanted for murder versus if they just ran a stop sign," Gandhi further explained.

The tricky part?

"A lot of times you don’t know why they are running," Gandhi shared.

Pursuit protocols in place

That was the case with this chase: Why did the suspect steal the Tesla to begin with?

"Stolen cars and things like that are associated with more nefarious crimes," Gandhi reasoned.

Law enforcement agencies also take into account what area they’d be speeding through, avoiding car chases near schools or construction zone.

"It’s not just at the onset. It’s during as the situation evolves," Gandhi spoke.

There are pursuit protocols in place to prevent the public from getting caught in the middle.

"The worst case scenario is kind of what we saw that night," Gandhi expressed.