Beyond the Badge: How LaPorte County Sheriff's Office patrols commercial drivers

LAPORTE, Ind. – ABC57’s Beyond the Badge series continues with LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office. The county has many major highways and with that comes a lot of commercial drivers, passing through for business, such as the big rigs seen on the roadways. 

This week, Michiana meets one of the only deputies in the Hoosier state, who focuses solely on commercial driving enforcement. 

Deputy Ryan Elcock has been with the department for 11 years, working five on patrol and the last couple of years focused on commercial vehicles. 

LaPorte County is the second largest by area in the state, which means there’s a lot of ground to cover. With just under 600 sq. miles of land area, the county sees a lot of heavy truck traffic that other parts of the state don’t. 

Ryan has a lot of knowledge of the trucking industry to help him do his job. He said truck drivers have to have certain permits for the roads they drive through, typically from whoever maintains the road. 

Ryan enforces local ordinances and looks out for any driving behavior that could cause a crash to keep the community safe. 

To see how Ryan patrols the roads, watch the video above.