What began as a fatal carjacking on January 3, 1992, at 10:30 a.m., in Central California became the catalyst for change in local television that redefined live coverage of breaking news.
Although newsrooms have had access to helicopters for years, it wasn’t until Darren Michael Stroh led police on a 300-mile pursuit that the public developed a hunger for live pictures of a dramatic, high-speed chase.
Stroh, an unemployed electrician’s assistant, carjacked two vehicles, killing a motorist with a 12-gauge shotgun before heading south to Los Angeles on Interstate 5. Highway Patrol officers tailed the Volkswagen sedan through five counties as Stroh took potshots at officers through the back window.