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Impaired driving is the criminal act of operating a motor under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Substance impairment is not limited to illegal substances; furthermore, being under the influence of legally prescribed substances is also considered to be an offense. Impaired driving also includes “distracted driving”. Distracted driving is when an individual is distracted by something such as their phone or their GPS, potentially leading to an accident. Impaired driving directly relates to the criminal code by being an offense heavily rooted in criminal negligence. The act of impaired driving puts countless individuals at risk when the individual is severely impaired. Sections of the criminal code that relate to impaired driving include 219 to 221 (criminal negligence, including death and bodily harm by), and 320.11 to 320.4 (multiple laws surrounding blood alcohol levels, levels of consciousness/awareness when operating a motor vehicle, when police are allowed to ask for a breathalyzer test, punishments if caught driving while impaired).

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Man crashes into power line, knocking out power for thousands

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Man crashes into power line, knocking out power for thousands

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A man in Ajax crashed his car into a power line and took out the power going to thousands of homes as a result. Police laid impaired driving charges against the man following the incident.

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A man has been charged after a car took out a power line in Ajax early Tuesday morning.

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Stricter impaired driving laws now in effect for Canada, How police screen for impaired drivers

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Stricter impaired driving laws now in effect for Canada, How police screen for impaired drivers

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The video displays how police are now trained to both look for what is now considered to be impaired driving. The new laws have also included movements like changing the radio station or taking a drink to be considered impaired driving as well.

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New rules that increase penalties for drunk driving and expand police powers to demand breath samples take effect across Canada on Tuesday, with some predicting the law will face a series of legal challenges.

The legislation, which passed in June at the same time as new rules for drug-impaired driving, is intended to curb injuries and death by helping police catch drivers with more than the legal limit of alcohol in their bloodstreams.

It gives police officers the right to ask for a breath sample from any driver they lawfully stop, lowering the bar from the previous legislation, which required that an officer have reasonable suspicion that a person had been drinking. Such a system is already in place in more than 40 countries.

Toronto-based lawyer Michael Engel, who often defends those charged with impaired driving, said the new rules are a big change that raise concerns about baseless searches.

"This is a radical departure from previous law, which insulated people against warrantless searches without probable cause," he said.

The new rules could lead to a backlog in the legal system as lower courts wait for higher courts to make a decision on likely challenges to the law's constitutionality, he said.

This is a radical departure from previous law, which insulated people against warrantless searches without probable cause

"It's a brave new world," Engel said. "This is a wholesale change to the criminal code."

Civil rights organizations have also sounded alarms about the new rules, with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association expressing concern that mandatory alcohol screening will unfairly affect racial minorities who are disproportionately singled out by cops for traffic stops.

Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould has said she has "every expectation" the law will be challenged in the courts, but noted that she's sure it'll pass the test. She said it's in line with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Toronto police spokesman Sgt. Brett Moore said the lower standard for administering breath tests gives officers another tool in their belt to stop drunk drivers.

"Police miss a lot of impaired drivers," he said, noting that people can be quite good at masking their impairment.

"It's just a really good, strong message that there's a real high likelihood that if you get stopped by police, you're going to get asked to submit to a breath test."

To date, it's not apparent that any of the measures, which are already quite punitive, are having any deterrent effect

The new law has also been welcomed by Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada, which said mandatory alcohol screening has a proven track record of making roads safer.

Under the new rules, maximum penalties for many alcohol-impaired driving offences are being bumped up to 10 years from five, which the federal government and police forces alike hope will act as a deterrent for would-be drunk drivers.

But Engel said that whether it has an effect remains to be seen.

"To date, it's not apparent that any of the measures, which are already quite punitive, are having any deterrent effect," he said.

Provincial police in Ontario noted that between the beginning of 2018 and the middle of November, its officers had laid more than 7,300 impaired driving charges.

According to federal statistics, an average of almost four people die in Canada daily due to impaired driving.

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Stricter drunk driving laws to take effect across Canada Tuesday

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New rules that increase penalties for drunk driving and expand police powers to demand breath samples take effect across Canada on Tuesday, with some predicting the law will face a series of legal challenges.

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PEI impaired driving convictions at lowest point in 50+ years

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PEI impaired driving convictions at lowest point in 50+ years

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Interestingly, the number of drivers in PEI has grown over the years. This fact would almost imply that impaired driving charges would likely increase with the population increase. This is not the case due to "raised awareness" on the roads, as well as new laws being put in place to help combat impaired driving.

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Impaired driving convictions in P.E.I. are at their lowest point in more than 50 years.

Highway safety officials say a growth of public awareness and tougher penalties play a big part in that progress.

Back in 1967 there were 427 impaired convictions on P.E.I. Those numbers rose steadily every year after that, peaking in 1980 at 1,570, then gradually dropping. In 2018 there were 234.

"There's more to do, but it's moving in the right direction," said Graham Miner, director of P.E.I.'s highway safety division, noting they now see about five convictions a week, compared to five a day in 1980.

At the same time, the number of drivers on the road has steadily increased - from 77,750 in 1980 to 112,585 in 2018.

So what's changed?

Miner said the problem reached a "crisis point" in 1980.

"There wasn't a person in P.E.I. that didn't know someone that had been impacted by impaired driving, whether it was a death of a family member, relative or someone within your community," he said.

It was common decades ago to hear hosts encourage guests to "have one for the road" before heading home from a party or get-together, he said.

Over time, he said drinking and driving has become socially unacceptable, and he sees evidence in that more and more Islanders are calling 911 to report suspected impaired drivers.

There are also fewer repeat offenders being charged for impaired driving.

Miner said years ago about half the drivers caught had one or more previous convictions. Today that's down to about one third. He said fewer chronic offenders is an indication to him that most of those caught for impaired for the first time are not getting behind the wheel again after they've been drinking.

It's difficult to say for certain that there are fewer drunk drivers on the road - rather than police catching fewer of them - but Miner looks at other statistics that point to that, including the number of collisions, traffic injuries and deaths, which are all down dramatically from the 1980s.

Ignition interlock for 1st-time offenders

Tougher penalties and more enforcement are also playing a big role, said Miner.

Since 1980, P.E.I. has introduced the roadside Alert alcohol testing device, licence suspensions, ignition interlock and most recently mandatory vehicle impoundment.

Even first-time offenders must have an ignition interlock device installed in their vehicle - at their own expense - before they can start driving again. That device requires the driver to blow into it; if the machine registers any alcohol, the vehicle won't start.

"When you look at a first-time offender - and including costs of increased insurance and maybe whether you lost your job - a first-time offence, just on the monetary side, could run you $20,000 to $25,000 dollars," said Miner, with penalties increasing for subsequent convictions.

Stiffer penalties

Under the most recently-added penalties, first-time offenders will also see their vehicles impounded for a minimum of 30 days. The driver has to pay the towing fee and storage costs.

Those penalties include:

Fine over $1,000.

Jail time.

One-year driving prohibition.

Increase in insurance rates (doubling or tripling).

Minimum 1-year ignition interlock, installation and monthly operational fees - roughly $1,200 - $1,400.

Reinstatement of licence fee $750.

Vehicle impoundment towing fee and storage fee - about $600.

Mandatory rehabilitation programs.

Cannabis impairment

The legalization of cannabis in October 2018 has not led to a large increase in charges of drug impairment, said Miner, although the number of impairment convictions did rise slightly from 229 in 2017 to 234 in 2018.

Miner pointed out those convicted of impairment from drugs face the same penalties as alcohol impairment, although they are not required to have an ignition interlock device installed.

The CEO of MADD Canada Andrew Murie would like to see the technology improve in saliva testing for cannabis impairment.

"People aren't getting that message to the same degree they have on alcohol," Murie said.

Murie hopes to see a standardized test for drug impairment that can be used in court, so judges are presented with a clear definitive indicator similar to the breathalyzer test that's used to measure blood alcohol content. He thinks that will lead to more convictions for drug impairment.

"The ability to measure precisely for drugs, as we can for alcohol, is missing," he said.

Getting to zero

What will it take to keep all impaired drivers off the road?

Murie said technology is the answer.

"If we solely depend on people's behaviour there will always be a percentage of people who for whatever reason don't make good decisions."

Both Miner and Murie foresee a day when alcohol-sensing devices will be in all vehicles - preventing them from starting if the driver has consumed any alcohol.

Murie points to new vehicles now being designed by Volvo, for example, which will be able to determine the alcohol level of a driver from the air in the car and won't start if the blood alcohol level is over the limit.

He said he can see this being brought in as an option for drivers, and being made mandatory for commercial vehicles and truck fleets within the next decade.

"As the technology improves, we need to use it and embrace it," said Murie.

More P.E.I. news

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Impaired driving convictions at lowest point in 50+ years | CBC News

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Impaired driving convictions in P.E.I. are at their lowest point in more than 50 years. Highway safety officials say a growth of public awareness and tougher penalties play a big part in that progress. Back in 1967 there were 427 impaired convictions on P.E.I.

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Patrick Brogan is being charged with impaired driving and negligence when his car collided into six-year-old Joshua Penny, who was playing with his friends on their bikes. The Crown was seeking to determine whether the accused should be charged with impairment, as impairment doesn’t necessarily mean that there was criminal negligence involved. This is displayed in the case when in s. 17 it is mentioned that Mr. Brogan attempts to give Joshua CPR after colliding with him. The case resulted in Mr. Brogan being acquitted of all charges. The Crown found that, while he was certainly impaired at the time of the incident, he was not guilty of causing the accident that killed Joshua. This was primarily due to Mr. Brogan’s use of insulin which was believed to have amplified the effects of the alcohol consumed by Mr. Brogan. He was then considered to not be criminally negligent as he was not fully aware of the effects that insulin could have with alcohol, as well as the fact that the insulin was both taken before reaching the legal blood alcohol limit of .08 and was taken during an allergy attack.

References

R. v. Brogan, 2008 NSPC 42 (CanLII), <http://canlii.ca/t/1zrps>, retrieved on 2019-04-10

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Pickering man falls asleep at the wheel, charged with impaired driving

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Pickering man falls asleep at the wheel, charged with impaired driving

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A man from Pickering was charged with impaired driving when police officers found the man in his car in a ditch while fast asleep. The man was charged with impaired driving. Over-exhaustion is another issue that can lead to sleeping behind the wheel.

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Pickering man lands impaired after falling asleep at the wheel in Erin

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Wellington OPP responded to reports of a vehicle in the ditch near First Line and Wellington Road 50 in Erin, shortly after 12:30 a.m. on Sunday March 10.

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Impaired driving is a topic I have always felt strongly about as it has affected my family in the past on more than one occasion. It is a topic I feel great frustration around when I am discussing because I do not feel that there are strong enough punishments to help combat substance induced impaired driving. I would consider this to be a “surprise” but unfortunately it is not; rather, it is, again, highly frustrating for me to read and think about. Punishments that are not so strict are also what I will continue to remember. I appreciate that the new laws in Canada are attempting to make a greater change in the amount of impaired driving seen on the roads; however, I also feel that they don’t punish “true” offenders enough whilst hurting the reputations of good drivers that make honest mistakes. I do not feel that changing the radio station should be considered “impaired driving”, I feel that more attention needs to be paid to those who abuse substances and hop on the road.