Even if they are frequently associated with racial profiling, random roadside interceptions are useful, argue Quebec police chiefs, who estimate that more than 6,000 drivers at fault were punished last year thanks to this measure which could be called upon to disappear.
“Although this report represents only an overview, these data allow us to conclude that 636 is a tool that must remain”, affirmed this morning Pierre Brochet, president of the Association of Quebec police directors (ADPQ) and director of the Service de police de Laval, at a press conference, in Saint-Hyacinthe.
As part of its annual symposium, the ADPQ made public a report on the random roadside interceptions carried out by 24 police forces during 2022, in order to demonstrate their usefulness.
These so-called “random” interceptions currently allow the police to arrest drivers without reason to believe that there has been an offence. This practice, which is however often associated with the concept of systemic racism, was abolished by a judgment of the Superior Court last fall. However, the case has since been appealed by the provincial government.
“People often make the link between racism and the use of this article 636. Although we have just demonstrated that this tool can be used to avoid collateral damage, the fact remains that social and racial diversity , inclusiveness and respect for everyone are important values for the ADPQ,” said Didier Deramond, Executive Director of the ADPQ.
“This is why the directors recommended to the government to ask the National Police Academy of Quebec to see to continuous training on power and duty, but also on social and racial diversity,” he continued. . He also specified that a request had been made to the government to set up a forum on racial profiling.
Significant %
According to the data collected, this type of interceptions would have represented approximately 15% of total offenses last year in three categories in particular.
No less than 3,500 drivers were arrested without a driving licence, which turns out to be 16% of the fines issued for this purpose.
In addition, 1,581 drivers were traveling with an unregistered or uninsured vehicle, i.e. 9% of the total number of offenders.
Finally, 1,064 drivers were arrested with the ability to drive impaired after a random interception. This represents 29% of all impairment violations found.
“This power therefore makes it possible to identify a significant proportion of drivers posing an imminent risk to the life and integrity of citizens sharing the public highway”, according to what the ADPQ asserts in its report.
In addition to the statistics, the Association maintains that this power also allows the police to notice certain other offenses during the inspection of the vehicle.
Among these, concealment, possession of a weapon, possession of drugs, the learner driver not accompanied by a tutor and the person not holding a driving licence.
“We are of the opinion that the withdrawal of this power would contribute to the impunity of offenders and would worsen the road safety record,” maintains the ADPQ, which moreover recently mandated the Sûreté du Québec to develop a system to be able , in the near future, to list all offenses related to section 636.
Other issues
During their symposium, the directors of police in Quebec also looked into the files of portable cameras and the status of repeat offenders.
“It is in this context that we hope that the government will make its decision on portable cameras within six months,” said Mr. Deramond.
In addition, the ADPQ took the opportunity to recall that eight police officers, including Sergeant Maureen Breau, have died in service in the country since last September.
” This is unacceptable. That’s almost one policeman a month. I won’t lie to you, the ADPQ is very concerned about the way violent repeat offenders are handled by our Canadian justice system, about the emergence of violence against police officers in Canada, about the escalation of violent crimes involving firearms fire, by violence that is intensified by mental health and addiction problems,” said President Pierre Brochet.
The ADPQ therefore demands, like the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, that repeat violent offenders have a different status from other criminals, in order to reverse the burden of proof.
“Some individuals take advantage of the system and then do something irreparable in our society,” he said. What we would like is for it to be the responsibility of the repeat violent offender to demonstrate to the court that he can be released and not the other way around. We strongly believe it would make a difference. We have to take action, we absolutely need changes. »
*Note that the data compiled by the ADPQ comes from an extraction of police data and may not be exhaustive, in addition to not bringing together all the police services in Quebec. According to the ADPQ, these data could therefore underestimate the real scope of random interceptions. They do not, however, accumulate the number of interceptions that did not lead to any violation.
What Article 636 says:
A peace officer, identifiable at first sight as such, may, within the scope of the functions he exercises under this Code, require the driver of a road vehicle to stop his vehicle. The driver must comply with this requirement without delay.