A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ruled parts of the provincial government's tougher drinking and driving penalties unconstitutional.
Recently, the court ruled that the now one-year-old tougher laws on drinking and driving violate the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by not providing an avenue for those accused to seek an appeal.
"I have found that the challenge succeeds in part," wrote Justice Jon Sigurdson in the decision, "because in one respect the impugned legislation infringes the rights of individuals to be free from unreasonable search and seizure."
Before, drivers who blew over .08 blood-alcohol content or refused a Breathalyzer test faced an immediate 90-day suspension, a $500 fine and a 30-day impounding of their vehicle. They also faced potential criminal charges and had to pay for a device that prevented drunk drivers from starting a vehicle.
The penalties for drivers who blow between .05 and .08 blood-alcohol content remain as they have been since the introduction of the new penalties. The court found that in this circumstance any infringements on Charter rights are reasonable, meaning that despite the same lack of appeal process the penalties are small enough and the greater good of the law important enough that the court upheld the current rules.
Shirley Bond, B.C.'s solicitor general, said in a press release said that the government will study the decision and change the laws to reflect it. She informed drivers that the penalties for those who blow in the "warn" range will remain the same and that drivers who blow over .08 will still potentially face criminal charges and a 90-day driving ban.
"In the first year since the introduction of the IRP [immediate roadside prohibitions], there has been a 40 per cent reduction in fatalities attributed to impaired driving," said Bond in the statement. "Clearly, we are going to act quickly to make the fix that is required here to ensure we maintain the success we have had with saving lives in B.C."
The penalties have been controversial since their introduction, especially for restaurant and bar owners who say that the changes have hurt their businesses. The province stands by the laws and reported recently that the new penalties saved 45 lives in the first year since introduction, when compared to the five years previous.
Under the rules, drivers caught with a blood-alcohol level of .05 to .08 face an automatic licence suspension of three days and a $200 fine. If caught twice at this level within a five-year period, offenders will receive a seven-day ban and a $300 fine. If caught three times within five years, drivers face a 30-day ban and a $400 fine.
