York police helicopter tracks Pokemon GO player driving erratically
The driver was stopped in the Keele St. and Teston Rd. area.

TheStar.com
Aug. 9, 2016
Oliver Sachgau

It’s not the kind of call police were expecting at 3 a.m. on a Monday.

It started out routinely enough. Reports of a car driving erratically near Keele St. and Teston Rd. reached York Regional Police, who sent out the chopper and followed the car as it drove, stopped, started again, then suddenly pulled a quick U-turn.

Their worry was that the driver was impaired, “or looking to do break-and-enters,” YRP spokesman Const. Andy Pattenden said.

Turns out, the driver was playing Pokemon Go.

Video footage from the chopper shows officers stopping the vehicle near Saint Joan of Arc Ave. and Drummond Dr. to question the driver, who revealed he was on a mission to catch Pokemon. In the video, an unnamed officer can be heard saying “hopefully he got all his Pokemons (sic).”

It’s the latest in the renewed tension between players of the immensely popular game and public officials trying to find a way to deal with Pokemon Go players pursuing their quarry at all hours of the night and day.

In this case, Pattenden said he wasn’t sure the driver had broken any laws. If the game was being played while the car was being driven, it could qualify as distracted driving, which is punishable by a $490 to $1,000 fine and three demerit points. But police would need conclusive proof the driver was operating the phone while driving, he said, adding it looked as if the driver didn’t come to a complete stop at a stop sign at one point in the video, which is a traffic violation.

“It definitely appears that he’s driving distracted, just with the method with which he’s driving: stopping, turning. It’s really up to the officer whether they lay a charge or not,” Pattenden said. In this case, the officer let the driver off with a “stern warning,” according to a police media release.

Officials at Niantic, the developer of Pokemon Go, have responded to similar events around the world with a warning in the app that tells players not to play while driving. They have also added a button to click that says "I am a passenger."

This isn’t the first time Pokemon Go players have come to the attention of police. On July 23, a woman allegedly shot at Pokemon Go players near her property with a pellet gun.

Police charged 29-year-old Patricia Champagne with assault with a weapon and possession of a weapon for dangerous purposes. In response, police released a statement warning players to obey laws, not to trespass and to be aware of traffic signals and vehicles.

At the Queen’s Quay Ferry Terminal, Pokemon players are still gathering en masse, leading to problems for the city and concerns about the impact the crowds have on those trying to get on and off the ferries.

Staff from the ferry operations met with city parks and recreation staff Tuesday to discuss short-term solutions and the city has asked Niantic to move some of the Pokestops – in-game beacons where players congregate – away from the ferry.

City parks spokesperson Matthew Cutler said staff will install barricades and signs along the walkway to the ferry “that hopefully will help to delineate the pinch points.” The city is still trying to get the Pokestops moved, but needed to do something until that happens, Cutler said.

“As you can appreciate, the (Pokemon Go) developer is quite busy. The success of the game I think overwhelmed them. They’re not in a position to really work too closely with us at this stage,” Cutler said.

Cutler said no one wants to discourage players from going to the park and terminal.

“We’ve said all along that we’re really pleased with how Pokemon Go has brought new people into our parks,” he said. “But we do need to manage the impact in particular on the ferry service.”