N.B. Mountie explains roving traffic units practices amid court comments

MONCTON, N.B. RCMP Cpl. Rick Tessier says the Mounties in his roving traffic unit dont pull over motorists on the highway in New Brunswick because they look like drug traffickers.

They also dont disregard charter rights in order to seize drugs and make an arrest. And when an officer tells a motorist hes free to go or free to refuse questions or a search, Tessier says that motorist is free to leave.

Ive had people refuse (my request), I tell them to have a nice day and they put the car in drive and they leave, he says.

Police searches are a live issue in courts across the country and Moncton, N.B., is no exception.

From Moncton provincial court to the Supreme Court of Canada, lawyers are debating the legality of everything from police dogs sniffing luggage at the bus station to Mounties searching vehicles during a highway traffic stop.

Moncton provincial court has seen two cases over the past few weeks involving traffic stops on Highway 2. In both cases, Const. Stephane Raymond received permission to ask the driver a few questions and then received permission to search the vehicle. Both times approximately 23 kilograms of marijuana were seized.

In one instance, Judge Pierre Arseneault ruled the marijuana could not be entered into evidence because he felt the officer acted on a hunch, not reasonable grounds. In a case this week, Judge Irwin Lampert ruled the officer had obtained permission for the search and allowed the marijuana into evidence.

But Lampert also said judicial opinion in Moncton and elsewhere is clearly divided on the subject. He suggested the matter should be brought before the New Brunswick Court of Appeal for a decision.

I like judge Lampert, says Tessier. I dont have a problem with what hes saying.

Tessier was promoted to head of J Divisions roving traffic unit in March. The unit has three members in the southeast part of the province, including Tessier, and two in the northwest region. He says they spend most of their time patrolling the Trans-Canada Highway and since January have seized $6 million worth of drugs and contraband tobacco from vehicles.

Tessier took a break from his patrol Thursday to sit down and talk about his unit and how the officers operate, given the recent discussion of vehicle searches in court.

Hes heard local defence lawyers refer to their procedures as unconstitutional and improper, but he says those lawyers are hired to defend their clients, so thats to be expected.

Most of the attention the traffic unit receives is when an officer catches a big shipment of drugs, but Tessier says they do a lot more than watch for drugs on the highway. They enforce the Motor Vehicle Act, Criminal Code, offer assistance to drivers and even give directions.

We talk to people who say theyre driving to Montreal, but are actually heading east, he says with a chuckle.

While they have many duties, officers are cognizant of the fact the Trans-Canada is the pipeline organized crime uses to bring drugs into Atlantic Canada.

So when they pull someone over, the officers have their eyes open.

Tessier says theres no truth to the suggestion police invent motor vehicle infractions simply to pull over people they suspect of running drugs.

I cannot tell you what a travelling criminal looks like, he says. But I can tell you how a travelling criminal behaves.

Officers in this unit are trained under the RCMPs Pipeline program to spot people transporting illegal goods. During a traffic stop, they have a series of indicators they look for that raise suspicions theres something illegal in the vehicle.

Tessier says no one indicator is enough. It takes a series of red flags to make an officer suspect something.

For an example, he talks about a motorist being nervous. He says its natural for a driver to be nervous when talking to a police officer. But most people become less nervous as the encounter progresses.

People with a trunk full of marijuana or cocaine get more nervous the longer the encounter goes on. Combine that with other indicators and the officer may decide the situation requires more attention.

Tessier says according to police protocol, the officer completes the motor vehicle matter and returns the drivers licence and registration. If he has any suspicions, he tells the motorist hes free to leave, but asks if he can ask him a few questions.

Tessier says some people say no and drive away, while others agree to talk.