Quebec government wants Supreme Court to rule on random police stops

The Quebec government says it will seek leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada a ruling that found permitting random traffic stops leads to racial profiling.

In October, Quebec’s Court of Appeal upheld a 2022 Superior Court decision that declared inoperative an article of the province’s Highway Safety Code that allows police to stop drivers without reasonable suspicion that an offence has been committed.

In Quebec City today, Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette told reporters government lawyers will argue there were errors of law in the Court of Appeal's ruling.

Jolin-Barrette says the province will also ask that a six-month deadline imposed by the Appeal Court to make the necessary changes to the highway code be put on hold until the Supreme Court rules.

Public Security Minister Francois Bonnardel says he's happy the attorney general is moving to protect a section of the Highway Safety Code that police consider an important tool.

The 2022 decision only affected random stops and not structured police operations such as roadside checkpoints aimed at stopping drunk drivers.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 5, 2024.