The majority of charges laid in a typical week for the Weyburn Police Service are under the Traffic Safety Act. Sergeant Shane St. John offers driving safety reminders regarding common misconceptions about the rules of the road.
One such misconception regards how far over the speed limit motorists can travel. Sgt St. John says any speed over the limit can be ticketed.
“It's always at the officer's discretion. Everyone may be going 90 kilometres an hour and another person on the highway is in and out of traffic and they're going 108 and they're causing issues. They could be ticketed, it's not with the flow of traffic.”
Another misconception regards required documents during a traffic stop. Sgt St. John says there is a charge for being unable to produce proof of registration.
“It's a little trickier now as people register online. You can print your registration out online instead of going in to get it. You always have to have a copy of that registration handy. It's much more important to have your driver's license with your photo, that's much more important than the registration.”
From September 9th through 15th the Weyburn Police Service responded to 85 calls for service. A total of 39 charges were laid with four under the Criminal Code of Canada, 14 under the Traffic Safety Act, and one for failure to attend court.