Are you needing help from our Impaired Driving Lawyer In Vancouver? Call now 604-318-3838

Our impaired driving lawyer in Vancouver can help you with immediate assistance for an impaired driving charge or related matter, please contact us at 604-318-3838.

The Criminal Code of Canada defines the charge this way:

253. (1) Every one commits an offence who operates a motor vehicle or vessel or operates or assists in the operation of an aircraft or of railway equipment or has the care or control of a motor vehicle, vessel, aircraft or railway equipment, whether it is in motion or not,

(a) while the person’s ability to operate the vehicle, vessel, aircraft or railway equipment is impaired by alcohol or a drug;

The minimum penalties for an impaired conviction:

The minimum penalty upon CONVICTION for impaired driving in B.C. is criminal conviction, a $1000 fine, plus a victim fine surcharge of 15% (or an extra “$150 victim tax”), and a ONE YEAR driving prohibition effective anywhere in Canada. Somewhat duplicitously in B.C. the law also prohibits you automatically from operating a vehicle in BC for a period of at least ONE YEAR. Upon conviction for this offence and prior to retaining any driving privileges in British Columbia the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles in B.C. will require you: (a) to take a program currently called the “Responsible Driving Training Program” at a cost of close to $1000; (b) if you pass their inspection then to install an interlock ignition device in any car you intend to operate for ONE YEAR or more (commencing AFTER the expiry of your ONE YEAR driving prohibition as set out above) and require you to pay for the installation; and (c) to have the computerized interlock ignition device monitored monthly (or whenever they deem appropriate) resulting in monthly maintenance charges for you as long as you have the device installed. ICBC point premiums also attract additional financial penalty as 10 point are added to your license as a result of the conviction. The financial penalties (under the criminal law and for administrative sanctions) altogether therefore from your conviction can total close to $5000 to you. This is in addition to any penalties that you might have already received owing to any other administrative sanctioning that may have already occurred as a result of the police investigation, such as Administrative DRIVING PROHIBITIONS (ADP driving prohibition) or any IMMEDIATE DRIVING PROHIBITIONS (IRP driving prohibition). To find out more about ADP driving prohibitions or IRP driving prohibitions you are encouraged to CLICK HERE.

To read the most updated road safety regulations regarding driving while affected with drugs or alcohol, please visit the Ministry of Justice page here.

 

The legal basis for an impaired charge:

The basis for an impaired driving charge is that you actually operated (ie. actually drove) or had care or control (ie. you were in the driver’s seat of the car and assuming the position of the driver but sometimes without actually moving the car) while your ABILITY to operate a car was impaired by the previous consumption of alcohol or a drug. If you are charged with this offence then the Crown will attempt to prove the charge by eliciting incriminating evidence of the following:
(a) observations of your operation of the vehicle (ie. your driving pattern, swerving, moving violations, etc.);

(b) observations made (by the police or others) of your physiology that might be indicative of alcohol impairment (ie. your physical symptoms of impairment à smell of alcohol on breath, bloodshot eyes, balance problems like swaying or staggering while walking outside your car and in the police station, difficulty with fine motor coordination [in for instance retrieving your license or insurance papers], slurred or incoherent speech patterns, and other factors);

(c) any verbal admissions that you made that would indicate that you were impaired by alcohol (ie. “Can’t you just give me a break”, “I drank way too much but I only have to drive 2 blocks to get home”, etc).

The Crown must prove though all of the evidence that your ability to operate a motor vehicle was impaired by alcohol at the time you were actually driving or in “care and control” of the vehicle. This charge has a largely “subjective” component as it involves observations made by various witnesses of you at the relative time and the inferential conclusions that might be drawn from these observations.

The defence to an impaired driving charge:

The defence to an impaired driving charge is made out by mounting evidence that will cast a doubt that your ability to drive was affected/impaired by alcohol. The defence involves careful cross-examination of all Crown witnesses regarding the manner of driving, the symptoms observed and any admissions made. After careful and clever cross-examination is complete the defence may also involve your testimony outlining the reasons for any errant driving of symptoms observed or any admissions made. For instance, after a vehicle crash a driver may have hit his head on the steering column and therefore appear to be impaired when in reality he is simply injured. An injury might explain symptoms observed like walking difficulties, speech difficulties or strange accident scene behavior. All forensic experts will advise that the smell of alcohol from one’s breath in not determinative of the amount but merely the “recency” of alcohol consumption. Since is it not illegal to drive after having consumed some alcohol the smell of alcohol on one’s breath is not determinative of impairment but merely evidence of the fact that you had consumed “some” alcohol (for more information see ‘driving over the legal blood alcohol limit‘). Equally errant driving evidence may be explained simply by the fact that you were not paying attention, you were using an electronic device and distracted by it, or the mechanical condition or roadworthiness of your vehicle at the time of the allegation.

To best determine your defence for this charge you should contact our lawyer, Jamie Butler, to discuss the unique facts and circumstances that may apply to your case at 604-318-3838.

Plea deals available to an impaired driving charge:

Often times, though not every time, Jamie Butler is able to secure a plea negotiation for a substitutional charge to be added so that you plead guilty to a Motor Vehicle Act offence (such as “undue care and attention”) instead of a criminal impaired driving charge. For most information about plea negotiations, the avoidance of a criminal record and retaining your privilege/right to drive CLICK HERE