Now at the midway point of January, no one is happy to be stuck in the icy throes of winter. We just had the worst winter storm in nearly 50 years, it’s been nightmarishly cold for about a week and isn’t about to let up, not to mention the prospect of three more months of snow. In short, public sensitivity to Old Man Winter is at an all-time high. So it should come as no surprise that a winter storm incident involving two chiropractors, the RCMP and an ATV outfitted with a plow would lead to such a strong reaction from the public.
St. Albertans, and indeed people across the country, have been quick to come to the defence of Drs. Jon and Dan Cooper, a father-and-son chiropractic team that operate from their Bellerose Drive office. The Coopers shot to fame this week after news of their Good Samaritan deed went awry after a run-in with the St. Albert RCMP. After a near record one-day snowfall Saturday, the elder Cooper showed some neighbourly spirit when he tried to use his ATV to plow a sidewalk between his property and the nearby Ironwood Point seniors’ condominiums. The plan ran afoul when the ATV got stuck in the snow, prompting Cooper to return home to fetch his son and a pickup. Father and son tried to use tow ropes to free the vehicle, but not before attracting the attention of police.
This is where stories diverge. The RCMP say the Coopers’ caused a hazardous situation when their pickup blocked a traffic lane in poor weather, nearly causing collisions. The officers report an unco-operative atmosphere and a $250 fine was levied for operating an ATV within city limits, something that’s against St. Albert’s traffic bylaw. The younger Cooper faces charges of obstructing a police officer and resisting arrest. Meanwhile, father and son contend there was never a traffic safety issue and the situation could have been resolved in minutes if the police had not interfered. They also contend Dan Cooper was just talking to the RCMP and was not being difficult.
Given the backlash over “quadgate” and reports of warnings being handed out to other ATV-plow users, it’s clear weather isn’t the only thing creating a storm cloud over the city. St. Albertans are fed up with traffic fines thanks to speed-on-green cameras, photo radar vehicles that operate year-round (snow is cleared at popular speed traps) and a mayor who, on several occasions has publicly stated a desire to squeeze every last dime of fine revenue from both. Add in a police force with a credibility problem thanks to the Robert Dziekanski case and it’s no wonder the RCMP’s perceived handling of a ‘Good Samaritan’ has been about as popular as a Chris and Karleena Perry greeting card. Few can understand how such a good deed could be so punished, especially when the storm produced many good-hearted neighbourly moments like pushing stuck vehicles and snow shovelling armadas.
In truth, no one but the officers and the Coopers know what really happened after the ATV became stuck. Until both stories are heard in court — if it gets that far — no one can say definitively that there was an overreaction or a case of belligerence. What we do know is there are definite holes in the City of St. Albert’s traffic bylaw that need to be corrected to ensure this situation does not happen again.
Given Mayor Nolan Crouse’s statements on the matter, expect council to do just that and give ATV users the ability to plow after a severe storm. Closing that loophole would allow police and bylaw officers to focus on more pressing matters than handing out warnings and fines to well-meaning neighbours. It would allow the rest of us to help each other as needed and save our grumbling for one person: Old Man Winter.
