By CHIEF ROBERT DUTTCHEN, Corman Park Police Service
At approximately 10:00 p.m. on September 27 a member of the Corman Park Police Service (CPPS) who was on patrol around the Casa Rio Hamlet initiated a traffic stop of a vehicle in the vicinity of Grasswood Road and Clarence Street to check for driver sobriety. At the roadside the driver admitted to having been drinking and a smell of beverage alcohol was present on his person. The CPPS member made a demand for roadside screening device sample, and two samples were obtained of 41 mg% and 40 mg% respectively. Having a blood alcohol concentration of 40 mg% up to 79 mg% caries immediate consequences in Saskatchewan and this driver received a three-day suspension and his vehicle was impounded for the same period.
On the morning of September 28, CPPS responded to a report of a skid steer loader parked unusually in a copse of trees on a rural property in the vicinity of Township Road 370 and Range Road 3074. CPPS met with the landowner who consented to police investigating the loader. Though the location of the piece of machinery was odd, initial checks indicated nothing suspicious about the loader. As the CPPS member was working to establish a timeline for the arrival of the front-end loader on the property he reached out to the Saskatoon Police Service (SPS). Before his investigation at the scene had wrapped up SPS contacted him to advise that they had just received a report of the loader having been stolen. As a result, the CPPS member seized the loader and some evidence from within it and coordinated with the assigned SPS investigator. This is a great example where contacting police when something seems out of place can lead to disruption of crime in rural areas. If you see something, say something.
Later that evening CPPS initiated a stop of a vehicle on Highway 16 near Range Road 3062 for speeding. When the officer attended to the vehicle’s window he observed a quantity of unstamped tobacco inside the vehicle. After making the initial observation the officer searched the vehicle for additional cigarettes and located slightly more than a carton of unstamped cigarettes. The driver was issued offence notices for possession of unstamped tobacco, speeding and warnings for having a license plate cover and failing to produce his driver’s license.
At approximately 9:30 pm that same evening CPPS responded to an RCMP broadcast report of a possible impaired driver traveling south on Highway 11 between Warman and Saskatoon. A CPPS member located the vehicle, and a traffic stop was initiated. The manner of driving was consistent with impairment and a demand for a approved screening device sample was made at the roadside. This resulted in a ‘Fail’. The driver was conveyed to the Martensville RCMP detachment where in consultation with the RCMP a decision was made to process the driver administratively. The driver was issued a three-day suspension and vehicle impound and released to the care of a sober adult.
On October 1, moments before 11:00 pm, CPPS initiated a traffic stop related to the manner of driving in the vicinity of Highway 12 and 71st Street. Once the driver was identified it was determined he was the subject of an outstanding warrant in relation to an SPS traffic matter. The accused was processed at the roadside and released on an appearance notice.
Just before 10:00 pm on October 2, a CPPS officer was transiting through Warman when his attention was drawn to the erratic driving of a vehicle on Central Street West. The vehicle was stopped and the driver displayed signs of impairment by drugs. The driver was a novice driver whose license conditions do not allow the consumption of any drugs or alcohol when operating a vehicle. A demand was made for an oral fluid sample which returned a positive result for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, commonly referred to as THC. As a result, the driver received an immediate sixty-day license suspension, and his vehicle was impounded for three days.
Novice drivers violating Saskatchewan’s zero-tolerance substance restrictions face severe consequences extending far beyond immediate roadside penalties. A first offence triggers an immediate 60-day license suspension, a three-day vehicle impoundment, and a four-point demerit penalty that eliminates insurance discounts. Furthermore, offenders must pay for and complete a mandatory impaired driving education course, while their Graduated Driver Licensing clock resets to zero. Repeating violations escalate the sanctions to an 18-month suspension and mandatory ignition interlock installation.
On the evening of October 3, the CPPS joined RCMP members in a CheckStop in and around the Highway 219 area. The operation checked several vehicles including one where CPPS identified the driver as being impaired by THC. This driver, who tested positive on an oral fluid swab, was issued a three-day license suspension and vehicle impound. Collaboration is a core value of the CPPS and joint operations with all our enforcement partners are a great opportunity to strengthen interoperability and achieve economies of scale in enforcement initiatives thereby improving overall community and road safety.
On Sunday October 4, around 10:30 pm, CPPS stopped a vehicle traveling northbound on Highway 219. The driver displayed signs of impairment by drug and a demand to provide an oral fluid sample was made. The test resulted in a positive finding for cocaine. The driver was issued a three-day driving prohibition, and her vehicle was also impounded for the same period. All CPPS patrol vehicles are equipped with screening instruments capable of testing for drugs and alcohol and you never know where our officers will be out looking for impaired drivers.