Drunk Driving Penalties in Canada

"Your child has proven themselves 'just not ready' for the privilege of driving."

"[Behind the wheel of a Hyundai Veloster coupe the 18-year-old's driving reached an] unbelievable level of irresponsibility that could easily have resulted in a life-altering tragedy."

Sgt.Craig Roberts, traffic case manager, Ottawa Police Service

Bellevue Reporter

 

That's a note sent to a parent of an 18-year-old G2 driver clocked at 213 km/hr a few days back. He was charged with stunt driving, leading to a court date with fines of between $2,000 and $4,000 if he's convicted, on top of an automatic one-week driver's licence suspension and the impounding of the vehicle. Six demerit points as well, and potentially a two-year licence suspension. In all likelihood he may never become a conscientious, responsible driver. And he may also become a driver among many that constitute a menace on the road.

But then, because he lives in Canada and will likely continue to drive on Canadian highways, should he imbibe alcohol and then drive, he's in luck if he kills someone. Canadian law seems somehow to forget that vehicular manslaughter is in effect murder when it happens in drunk-driving. Murder with a blunt-force weapon. And if a negligent, entitled driver who doesn't feel that getting behind the wheel of a vehicle is a privilege, not a right to be compounded by inebriation, his/her attitude will be validated by the extent of the judgement levelled, even if multiple deaths occur.

Canada's courts seem to have a soft spot for alcohol abusers who think nothing of getting behind the wheel of a powerful engine encased in sheet metal, to hurtle down highways with blurred vision, slack responses and a casual disregard for personal responsibility. Take the case of a young man from an affluent family who disembarked from a private jet in Toronto, in an alcoholic stupor after attending a bachelor party in the U.S. Drunk enough to urinate on himself. But determined to drive his Jeep Cherokee from airport to home.

Streaking through a stop sign he hit a minivan and just like that three young children and their grandfather were dead. A ten-year prison sentence took him to prison in 2015, but since last April he's been on day parole. And in eight years' time he'll be driving again. He was no doubt devastated by the fact he was responsible for the deaths of four people. But he was in fact responsible for killing four people, and the penalty for that willful decision-making by someone of privileged entitlement was two years of incarceration followed by a relaxed regimen commensurate with a slap on the hand.

The message there can only be that Marco Muzzo did not deliberately cause grievous harm to others of an untold magnitude. And the tragedy that ensued when he felt it his right to do as he wished irrespective of capacity to do so in safety to himself but above all, toward others, was viewed by the court as unfortunate but obviously forgivable. If being the cause of four people's premature death in a horrendous, avoidable event merits such a judicial shrug, Canada refuses to penalize malefactors while ignoring the human rights and expectations of security of the majority.

In 2010, driving twice the speed limit without a licence or insurance, Alan Wood drove his Chevy Silverado into a Toyota Tercel driven by Bryan McCron, delivering newspapers with his 17-year-old son. The younger McCron groped his way out of the badly damaged Tercel with the intention of calling 911, only to have Wood punch him in the stomach. The teen's father died of a severed aorta. Wood's two-year prison sentence saw him on day parole after 7.5 months.

Jonathan Pratt had a blood alcohol level close to 2.5 times the legal limit while driving his truck 200 km/hr in 2011 near Edmonston, striking a Pontiac Grand Am. Bradley Arsenault 18, Kole Novak 18, and Thaddeus Lake 22, were smashed to smithereens in the impact that the truck created as it pierced the entire passenger compartment. There were three convictions of manslaughter that saw Pratt sentenced to serve the three convictions concurrently. In 2018 he was on day parole. 

Chad Olsen's blood-[alcohol content was three times the legal limit in 2010 in Alberta when he was responsible for the deaths of Brad and Krista Howe, parents of five children. He was speeding and sped through a stoplight. Nothing too much unusual for someone who had a lengthy record of traffic offences despite his  young years. Although he was originally given a two-year sentence, a Crown appeal increased the prison term to 3.5 years. Within seven months he was given day parole and by August of 2012 full parole.

In 2001, six-year-old Kevin Lavalee was playing in front of his Quebec home on the sidewalk. A truck driven by Andre Sweeney crushed the child to death. Sweeney was three times over the legal limit. Following two years in prison Sweeney bid for parole. It was rejected since it was noted by the parole board that he had failed to address his alcoholism. By 2006 the Parole Board of Canada claimed Sweeney to have shown "significant evolution" and parole was  his.

Marie-Michelle Benjamin enjoyed a night of drinking that left her with a blood-alcohol content close to twice legal limit in 2017. Driving a Chevrolet Aveo through two stop signs and a red light, she drove the wrong way to a bridge approach, struck a car head on, driven by Robert Albert 60, killing him. Although given a three-year prison term, she had parole within six months. The Parole Board of Canada sympathized with her "self-esteem issues" having precipitated the collision.

There's more, many more. Drunk-driving? It's an offence against humanity. Even the present Prime Minister of Canada's mother Margaret was once stopped and ticketed for driving drunk. Her high-priced legal representative argued that her fragile mental health condition exonerated her unfortunate lapse of judgement. Fortunately for the public at large, driving and pedestrian, she was stopped before an accident occurred.

It is an offence to drive or have care or control of a motor vehicle if one’s ability to do so is impaired to any extent by alcohol and/or drugs. The key issue is whether a person’s ability to operate a motor vehicle is impaired to any extent; the amount of alcohol and/or drugs an individual has consumed is irrelevant. As a result, a person can be convicted of impaired driving even if his or her blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) is below the federal legal limit of .08%. The phrase “to any extent” was added to this offence in 2018. Consequently, as currently written, the offence would include individuals who exhibited signs of only modest impairment of their ability to drive. However, it remains to be seen whether the courts will interpret the scope of this offence more broadly in light of the 2018 amendment.

MADD Canada

Warren and Kallianos

There is no shortage of lawyers ready and prepared to defend clients on charges of driving under the influence. They openly advertise their services, counselling would-be clients never to plead guilty to such charges, and offering their advice, such as this:

Facing impaired driving charges is a stressful situation. You may have stopped thinking clearly and just want to put the whole situation in your past. The worst thing you can do at this point is plead guilty so that you can get the ordeal over with.

Impaired driving is a criminal charge. A criminal record can affect your ability to work and travel. If convicted, you face significant fines and possible jail time. Even after the suspension of your driver’s licence is lifted, you may find that your insurance rates are prohibitively high, preventing you from driving for years.

Fortunately, you don’t have to face these possible consequences alone. There’s help and there’s hope.  Sean May can assess your case and will fully explain the following:

• Impaired driving charges are difficult to prove and it is the prosecutor’s job to prove that you are guilty. They may not have sufficient evidence to prove the case against you.
• You may have a defence that will cause your charges to be dismissed, even though it may not be apparent to you.
• Even without a defence, you may be able to negotiate a plea to a lesser offence, like a traffic ticket.  Sean May can determine if this is an option in your case and get you the best possible result.
• If you do proceed to trial, Sean May’s expertise and training will be crucial to preparing for and conducting the trial.

Never assume that the case against you is open and shut. Do not plead guilty until Sean May has reviewed your case.