County peace officers on more highways

By Sean Feagan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Wheatland County’s peace officers may soon be patrolling major highways in the county, following a request to the provincial government.
Currently, the county’s peace officers’ jurisdiction includes only the county’s three-digit highways.
But the county has applied to the Alberta Justice and Solicitor General to expand the jurisdiction to include its one- and two-digit provincial highways, which includes Highways 1, 21, 22X, 24 and 56.
Expanding peace officer jurisdiction to include these highways will help traffic enforcement, resulting in a safer county, said Amber Link, Wheatland County reeve.
“There are many residents of Wheatland County who live on these roadways and have traffic safety concerns,” she noted.
The request comes in response to a March 30 bulletin by Sean Bonneteau, provincial director of law enforcement standards and audits, stating that employers of community peace officers may request an exemption to the policy limiting officer jurisdiction on major highways.
This change in provincial law enforcement strategy arose following discussions between the Alberta Association of Community Peace Officers and the Minister of Justice and Solicitor General last January.
If the exemption is granted, the county’s peace officers will be better able to respond to the issues they see on the road, said Link.
“In the course of their duties, travelling on these highways, (they) can deal with traffic safety matters, such as high speeds and insecure loads, and respond to citizen complaints regarding traffic safety matters,” she said.
“Previously, they would have to contact the local RCMP to deal with matters on one- and two-digit highways.”