Special constable

A special constable or special police constable (SC or SPC) can refer to an auxiliary or part-time law enforcement officer or a person who is granted certain (special) police powers.

In some jurisdictions, police forces are complemented by a special constabulary, whose volunteer members have full police powers and hold the office of constable. In other jurisdictions, specifically Canada and parts of Australia, special constables are sworn peace officers granted police powers to enforce specific legislation in a distinct context or geographic area (e.g. universities, public transit, parks, etc.). Historically, and in different contexts, special constables have been paid or volunteer members of an ad-hoc reserve force or a permanent auxiliary, and have ranged from unarmed patrols to armed paramilitaries.

In the Australian state of New South Wales, special constables can now only be appointed by the NSW Police Commissioner. Previously, to augment the NSW Police but also to protect the community against abuse or neglect by the NSW Police, Special Constables could be appointed by a magistrate or two justices where "tumult, riot, or serious indictable offence has taken place, or may be reasonably apprehended" and the magistrate or justices believe that "the ordinary constables or officers appointed for preserving the peace are not sufficient for the preservation of the peace, and for the protection of the inhabitants and the security of their property, or for the apprehension of offenders". Special constables were appointed under the Police (Special Provisions) Act 1901 and had the same powers as constables of the NSW Police.

In South Australia, community constables are recruited by South Australia Police to serve the Indigenous Australian communities. Working alongside police officers, the Aboriginal Australian or Torres Strait Islander community constable help to run a wide range of programs.

State police stationed near their state borders are sometimes assigned the status of special constable in the neighbouring state to allow hot pursuit of offenders across state borders and lawful arrest on the other side.

In Canada, a special constable is a sworn peace officer granted police powers to enforce specific legislation or provide police services to a distinct context or geographic area. They are generally unarmed, and while some special constables possess full police powers while on duty, others have extremely limited authority. Special constables can be employed by universities, government corporations like transit commissions and bridge authorities, police forces, municipalities, First Nations, and humane societies.

Historically, special constables in Canada were used on an ad-hoc basis to serve summons, provide paid temporary augmentation to a police force, or provide specialized security police services. During the Winnipeg General Strike, Winnipeg police officers refused to sign an anti-union pledge and were promptly dismissed, replaced with special constables with the express mission of ending the strike.

Although special constables are increasingly used for routine frontline policing in every province and territory, the regulatory framework for special constables across Canada has generally continued to assume that special constables are used for rare and unusual circumstances. In most of Canada, for example, special constables generally do not need to unilaterally meet the stringent training and service standards that police services do, and outside of Alberta and Manitoba, the regulation of special constabularies and other special constable employers is undertaken on a case-by-case basis by either the provincial government or regional police commissions.