Stricter drunk driving laws come into effect in Canada today. We speak to impaired driving lawyer Paul Doroshenko on the concerns he has about what these new rules mean.
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“Well, first of all, the new probation which they call random breath testing is unconstitutional. The previous scheme we had where the police need to have a reasonable suspicion wasn’t particularly difficult for the police. There was a reason.”
“The charter right says we have the right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure so there is no reason in these circumstances. It is a search. It is a seizure. They are collecting your breath to use it against you in a criminal process and it is not based on a reason. It is based on a whim or whatever the police officer got.”
“The reason that they use to have, that is gone. Now, they just can pull you over. They don’t need to have a reason. They can pull you over because they don’t like you. They might be jealous of your car and they can make you blow into a breathalyzer. The big thing is a lot of people understand that we have charter rights. A lot of people who haven’t had a drink for 30 years know that the police can’t just pull them over and make them blow, but that is gone. That is gone away and if you refuse, you are facing a criminal record and a $2000 fine.”
“That is one of our first concerns. We are going to see a spike in refusal cases across the country because first of all a lot of people think they are in the position where they don’t have to provide a sample because the government hasn’t had a huge ad campaign to explain this to people.”
To watch the full interview, click here.