Traffic DIVISION
Staff
The St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office's Traffic Unit is comprised of three full-time officers. All full-time officers have had numerous years of general law enforcement experience prior to transferring to the Traffic Unit.To be assigned to this division, officers have displayed an interest in traffic enforcement and accident investigation. Upon assignment, the officers receive further education in the field of accident investigation.
Training
Traffic deputies receive training in basic crash investigation, including scale mapping of scenes and basic mathematics for use in speed computation based on skid and damage data. The Traffic Division also receives further training in traffic crash reconstruction, certification as Standardized Field Sobriety Testing instructors, Police Traffic Radar instructors, and DrivingEquipment
Two fully marked cars, one unmarked car are assigned to the Traffic Division. All units are outfitted with state-of-the-art radar units that can be utilized either in stationary or patrol modes.Additionally, the unit has one radar trailer that can be placed alongside the road in areas where speeding complaints are prevalent. The radar trailers are set up in an effort to allow persons traveling the area to be aware of the speed limits and the fact that they may be in violation.
Responsibilities
Traffic's three full-time deputies are responsible for enforcing traffic laws and investigating crashes that occur on all parish roadways and, when a trooper is not available, on state roads. They also assist with state road crashes when delays in clearing the roadway would cause undue traffic problems. On-call 24 hours a day, the division is called upon to handle all fatalities on parish roads and, again, if a state unit is not available, state roads.Traffic deputies also participate in public safety awareness programs and also conduct school zone traffic throughout the school year.