Can an officer from a different township pull me over?

Q: I got pulled over and got a citation for that township police department but the officer was from a different township. (Canonsburg, PA)

A: There is a PA statute that allows an officer to leave his jurisdiction and follow (pursue) a vehicle if he suspects a crime or motor vehicle offense is being committed. You might find it in Section 6342 of the PA Motor Vehicle Code in Title 75. So, if you are cruising through township A and blow a stop sign, a police officer can follow you into township B and stop you and cite you. If you are saying that the officer from township A handed you a ticket identifying himself as a township B officer, that is weird. Are you sure he doesn’t work for both townships which is not uncommon in smaller communities that have part-time officers?

If you feel like this issue relates to you, or a problem that you are experiencing, please contact me so that we can discuss your situation.