Canadian officials are considering diplomatic action after four American police cruisers chased a stolen pickup through a border station in Niagara Falls and continued their pursuit into the busy tourist town before the truck struck and killed a female bystander.
Whatâs cop talk for âoopsâ?
The U.S. officers involved, members of the force in neighbouring Niagara Falls, N.Y., could be charged as a result of the incident, which occurred just after dark on Wednesday. Constable Richard Geady of the Niagara Region Police said that if charges are laid in Canada, they "would be a violation of our general orders to continue on all the way to Resolute if necessary." Friends say it was Laurie Bishop, a 40-year-old mother of two daughters, who was rammed by the fleeing vehicle as she stepped out of a parked car. The truck kept on going, leaving Ms. Bishop dying in a pool of blood, then collided with a snowbank and a parking meter before coming to a stop. The driver, who was brandishing a gun, jumped out and fled on foot. He was eventually wrestled to the ground by a constable from the Niagara Region force, but not before taking a shot in the officerâs direction.
U.S. police are not permitted to chase suspects into Canada, said Reynald Doiron, a spokesman for the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs. "Both sides fully recognize the importance of respecting each otherâs authority and national sovereignty," Mr. Doiron said. "The government is not taking this incident lightly. We will be carefully reviewing all the facts before determining an appropriate course of action." Officials from various sources said a diplomatic representation regarding the violation of sovereignty could be made as early as today. One customs official, who asked not to be identified, said the American police did not radio ahead as is the protocol in cross-border chases, and customs agents were in shock when the truck and four cruisers zoomed through the crossing.
The truck, which had been stolen minutes earlier from a telephone repairman in Niagara Falls, N.Y., crashed through the barrier arm that was closed over the bus lane of the inspection station with two police cars in pursuit. Two other cruisers drove through regular inspection lanes, which were open at the time. One of them stopped as it arrived in Canadian territory; the others roared half a kilometre up the road before rounding a corner and vanishing from the sight of the customs guards. Constable Geady said the American officers were told to stop a short time later and did so, then returned to the border... The issue for customs agents "is that any one of us could have got struck by the vehicle or God knows what could have happened. And then the issue extends to obvious disregard for Canadian sovereignty," said Ron Moran, the national president of the Customs and Excise Union. "The number of jurisdictional infractions that would have been committed by the police officers would be countless. All you have to do is try to imagine if Canadian officers had done this on the U.S. side. The whole border would have been shut down across the country."
OK .com letâs see how you spin this one :) 
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