Dear Cop - Absolute Liability

Contributed - Nov 23, 2004 / 5:30 am | Story: 5397

Is there any consistancy to what an officer considers speeding? Some speeding violations are issued with zero tolerance, while many drivers feel they are safe traveling at 10, 15, or 20 km/hr over the limit. Is this issue at the officer's discretion, or is there an assumed margin of error instructed to the RCMP?

The Traffic Courts of B.C. indicate that there is an "absolute liability" in regards to speeding. This means if you are 1 km/h over the posted speed limit, you are considered to be speeding. There is no assumed margin of error instructed to the R.C.M.P.
The issuing of a violation ticket for speeding is definitley at the discretion of a police officer.

Constable R.A.(Richard) ASELTON
Central Okanagan Traffic Services - Media Liaison

This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet.

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About the Author

Tim Schewe is a retired constable with many years of traffic law enforcement experience. He has been writing his column for most of the 20 years of his service in the RCMP.

The column was 'The Beat Goes On' in Fort St. John, 'Traffic Tips' in the South Okanagan and now 'Behind the Wheel' on Vancouver Island and here on Castanet.net.

Schewe retired from the force in January of 2006, but the column has become a habit, and continues.

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