Supreme Court rules on tough British Columbia impaired driving law

Canada’s Supreme Court has made a decision on B.C.’s drunk driving laws.

“If you’re caught with a blood alcohol level that registers a “fail” on the roadside screening device you are going to have the penalty imposed on you which includes a 90-day driving prohibition which is immediate as well as the likelihood of having to take an alcohol responsible driver’s course”, adds Shapray.

The high court handed down a pair of judgments Friday, a 6-1 decision and a unanimous 7-0 ruling, that uphold key portions of the law. A majority of justices disagreed saying the law balances individual liberties against protection of the public. They argued the rules violated their rights of unreasonable search and seizure and their guarantee of innocence until proven guilty.

The SCC stood by the appeal court’s ruling October 16.

In a statement from Justice Minister Suzanne Anton, released following the decisions, she said she was pleased to see the court agree with the province’s arguments in both cases and that the court did not introduced any new concerns with the immediate roadside prohibition law.

“Our government believes strongly in our immediate roadside prohibition law, and we know it saves lives – 260 since September 2010, in fact”.

“Our plan [is] to continue to have one of the toughest drinking driving laws in the country and to continue to protect public safety by getting these drivers off our roads”, Anton said.

In the first case, Lee Michael Wilson was pulled over in 2012 and the two breath samples he provided registered in the “warning” range. The courts found his punishment didn’t violate his basic rights as he had argued.

Roadside penalties have largely supplanted criminal investigations and prosecutions for impaired driving in B.C. The amount of time and money expended on drunk driving cases in the courts and by police is down because of the almost 70 per cent drop in impaired charges.

The ruling stems from two cases where drivers were given roadside suspensions following either failed or refused breathalyzer samples.

The plaintiffs challenged B.C.’s automatic roadside prohibitions on constitutional grounds for drivers who blow over.

Today’s SCOC ruling applied to the 2010 version of the law, the province has since been changed to allow drivers a second breath test and a legal review of their driving ban.