I WAS saddened to read of another teenager’s death while being pursued by the police and feel that these high-speed chases should be abandoned.

Many readers emailed in saying it was his own fault but we have to think of his grief-stricken family. He was obviously no angel, but I do not believe that using false number plates and stealing some petrol warrants the death penalty.

When these lads see a police car behind them, they immediately speed up, then the police vehicle speeds up and we end up with not one but two cars being driven at excessive speed, thereby doubling the danger.

Bear in mind that it is not only the errant driver who may come to grief but also innocent members of the public and there have been several examples of police cars crashing while in pursuit or responding to an emergency with members of the public being injured and, in some cases, the police themselves.

Some readers stated that it was all right for the police to drive at these speeds because they are specially trained.

However, I have competed in more than 200 races and rallies over the past 50 years at speeds up to 140mph and would not dream of travelling at even half that speed in built-up areas and the police are no more able to cope with the hidden dangers on the roads than I am.

The silly part about it is that the police had a full description of the vehicle and with all the modern technology available, they could have probably arrested him the following day under safer circumstances making this pursuit pointless apart from “the thrill of the chase”.

I would like to stress that this is not a personal attack on the police who do an excellent job under difficult circumstances and I have the utmost respect for them.

However, we need to find a safer method of apprehending these drivers such as satellite tracking, roadblocks up ahead and nail carpets.

GRAHAM CRIBB, Branksome Wood Road, Bournemouth