AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — A violent weekend and crime trend in Aurora have the police department set to make changes on chases to send a message to criminals.

There were five shootings in Aurora over the weekend without a single arrest made. It’s a trend that has the police chief ready to make policy changes. A policy change that’s already in the works is to bring back police chases to crack down on catching criminals.

Interim Police Chief Art Acevedo said the department is in the final stages of this policy change. He said it’s aimed at warning criminals they’re going to be held accountable, and running will no longer be an easy way out

“Too many agencies in this state and this country are not chasing criminals, and they think they can flee and the police are going to let them go. That’s going to change in Aurora. So I would tell these crooks, don’t be hanging out here, because unlike other agencies in big cities, there’s a good chance you’re to be chased and be caught and you’re gonna be brought to justice,” Acevedo said.

How could police chase policy affect Aurora?

Tactics expert James Albee said the change will be a delicate balance.

“I think it is going to end up pushing some of the criminal activity out of Aurora if they know that they are going to be pursued and apprehended,” Albee said. “That’s going to come with some common sense policing and some more supervision — who’s going to have to closely monitor when a pursuit is going to be allowed and the time of day, traffic, and there is a ton of different variables that are going to determine whether the risk is gonna outweigh the end result.”

Acevedo said a chase will only happen in certain circumstances, with the safety of the community at the center of that decision-making.

“It’s time for us to decide: Are we going to just let criminals out of going to jail or prison where they belong when they’re going out shooting and violating the safety and the peace of this community? Or are we going to actually do something about it and catch them?”

There’s no word on the timeline of when this policy will be changed or any of the specifics. Acevedo also stressed to the community how important it will be to pay attention to patrol cars with lights and sirens on once this policy is changed.