Local Mounties drew some blood against impaired drivers, last year. Alexa would have thanked them.
A police officer makes it onto Alexa's Team if they forward charges to Crown for at least 10 impaired driving suspects, and issue an Immediate Roadside Prohibition to at least 10 more.
A ceremony was held Thursday to honour the Mounties who could meet or beat this total. Although the goal might seem high, the results showed it was painfully easy to catch that many local drunks driving on the region's roads.
Across B.C., in the three years since Alexa's Team was launched, 420 police officers have made the team and took almost 19,000 impaired drivers off the road in the process.
Thirty-one members made the team this year from North District, six of whom were deemed "Alexa's All-Stars" for their extra impressive nose for alcohol effects.
Rather than the minimum 20 confirmed cases, these members went above and beyond. They and their case totals are:
- Const. Travis Reed: 35
- Const. Jason Gillis: 51
- Cpl. Mario Cloutier: 58
- Const. Ryan Arthur: 59
- Const. Greg Olson: 74
- Cpl. John Graham: 77
"They are out there any time of the day and night, and they are everywhere. I find them on main highways, streets, side roads, everywhere. We all do," Graham said about the large number of impaired drivers he took action against in 2010. "Everyone I stop, no matter what it is for, I check for that. My philosophy is, I assume every driver is possibly impaired and I go from there as the evidence shows me."
Alexa's Team is named for four-year-old Alexa Middelaer who was killed in May, 2008 by an impaired driver. Midelaer was feeding a cookie to a horse on the side of the road only a block from her Lower Mainland home when a poorly driven vehicle slammed her little life shut.
No one had to ask Graham why he was so passionate about removing impaired drivers from the road. Two little girls in spring dresses - his daughters - danced around the room during the ceremonies (held at Harwin elementary school, with Grade 2 students presenting a special hat to each officer) reminding everyone in the room why this issue was so vital.
"We are changing the world," said RCMP Insp. Ted Emanuels, operations officer for Lower Mainland Traffic Services. He attended to celebrate the work of his northern counterparts.
Also at the event was Alexa's mother, Laurel Middelaer. The Citizen spoke with her at the ceremonies and that conversation will be revealed tomorrow in a feature story.
Alexa's Team 2010 from the RCMP's North District are:
Const. Matthew Waroway
Const. Scott Johnston
Const. Christopher Mosley
Const. Guillaume Pelletier
Const. Courtney Cross
Const. Tyler Cargill
Const. Paul Koester
Const. Rhonda Williams
Const. Michael Zinn
Const. Christopher Spiers
Const. Mike Bless
Const. Rober Dickson
Const. Brian Davis
Const. Michael Sabulsky
Const. Peter Crockford
Const. Colin Zwicker
Const. Darrin Sanderson
Const. Joshua Smith
Const. Timothy Paulmert
Const. Jason Spielman
Const. Gregory Jodoin
Const. Serge Bruneau
Const. Mark Bezzina
Const. Allan Erickson
Const. Derek Henderson
Const. Travis Reed
Const. Jason Gillis
Cpl. Mario Cloutier
Const. Ryan Arthur
Const. Greg Olson
Cpl. John Graham
