This system is behind schedule—when we last covered it, the plan was for a deployment by the end of this year—but Virginia-based StarChase now claims that the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department is closing in on the final stage of testing, which could put a deployed GPS launcher on the road early next year. The purpose of StarChase is to stop high-speed pursuits by letting officers launch a sticky GPS tracker onto a fleeing vehicle. Savvy criminals, particularly ones who notice the green laser sight or hear the car-mounted air cannon go off, could pull over and rip off the transponder. But by then, the police would have had time to set up roadblocks and choppers, closing the net with less risk of a pursuit-ending crash.