Oregon No Chase Law
Agency discretion
Does Oregon have a no-chase law? No — Oregon has no statewide law restricting police pursuits. Each department sets its own chase policy.
What governs pursuits in Oregon
Oregon has no statewide statute limiting when a pursuit may be initiated; ORS 820.300/820.320 govern emergency-vehicle exemptions from traffic laws generally (not pursuit-specific triggers), and amendments in chapter 278, Oregon Laws 2025 to those sections take effect Jan. 1, 2027 but do not add statewide pursuit-initiation restrictions. Individual departments set pursuit policy — e.g., Portland Police Bureau updated its policy in 2024 to require officers weigh community risk against benefit of capture, and some agencies loosened restrictions in 2023-2024 after citing rising fleeing-related crime.
Will police chase a motorcycle in Oregon?
No state law addresses motorcycle pursuits specifically; each department's discretionary pursuit policy (weighing speed/road conditions/offense severity) applies equally to motorcycles as to cars.
No US state has a literal law forbidding officers from chasing motorcycles. What riders call a "no-chase law" is nearly always a department policy that tells officers to break off a pursuit when the danger to the public outweighs the arrest — and fleeing remains a crime in Oregon regardless. See the state-by-state motorcycle guide for how this works everywhere.
Recent changes
Chapter 278, Oregon Laws 2025 amends ORS 820.300/820.320 (emergency vehicle exemptions), operative Jan. 1, 2027 — general emergency-vehicle-operation update, not a new statewide pursuit-initiation restriction. Portland PD loosened its own pursuit policy in 2024.
Sources
- oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_820.300
- oregon.public.law/statutes/ors_820.320
- government-fleet.com/10213049/oregon-pd-loosens-pursuit-restrictions
- oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors820.html
Verified as of August 2026. Department policies can change without notice — check the agency's published policy for current break-off criteria.