Police car chases !

A man is dead - and his death will revive the controversy over police car chases.

A 22 year old with two juvenile companions was driving a stolen Holden Commodore when police detected it as unregistered - and gave chase. The criminal tried to evade capture by driving the wrong way up an access ramp - and collided head-on with the innocent motorist - killing him instantly.

Perhaps we are looking the wrong way when we consider how to deal with the crime of car theft !

How is it possible that we have reached the twenty-first century, but we have not managed to make stealing a motor vehicle impossible ?
Over the years all sorts of innovations have been claimed to deter theft - one of the latest being the " immobiliser " - which is supposed to shut down all systems unless it is either activated by a remote control, or has a code number punched in.

Modern cars have an on-board computer and a host of sophisticated refinements - but they are still capable of being stolen by a teenage kid with a screwdriver and a bit of wire.

It seems to be a conspiracy by car makers, the insurance industry and the government to avoid spending the huge amount of research money that would provide the ultimate theft deterrent.

It may be impossible to stop car theft by sophisticated thieves prepared to invest serious money in code breaking equipment, but it must be possible to devise a system that will defeat teenagers and kids.

It seems that all that is missing is - determination and resolve !