In Canada, and particularly in British Columbia, there is a persistent myth about police traffic stops. It goes like this: there is no law requiring a driver to roll their window down, so if you crack it open an inch, you can “defeat” the police. The first part of that belief is mostly correct. The […]
Rolling Your Window Down An Inch Does Not Outsmart the Police Continue Reading »
@prairiepaul If the police pull you over for speeding and ask you, “do you know how fast you were going,” what should you say? Usually your answer will not matter in court. However, the police ask that question as a method of controlling you or to confirm something they are not sure about. #Police #Ticket
One of the biggest aspects of the immediate roadside prohibition scheme that we find particularly troubling is how adjudicators deal with people’s statements to the police at the roadside. Use Immunity in Criminal Investigations In a criminal investigation when you’re pulled over and questioned about drinking, those answers are not held against you in court.
Why it is so important to remain silent when questioned by the police Continue Reading »
Surrey B.C. has a policing problem. As the city grew and crime increased, the question of whether Surrey should have its own dedicated police force became a significant civic issue. As of this writing, the future of policing in Surrey is unclear. There are two police forces working in Surrey and it’s unclear whether and
Are Surrey DUIs different because of their policing decisions? Continue Reading »
If you are worried that you have a warrant out for your arrest, but are not 100 percent sure, there are different ways to figure it out. Discovering whether a warrant has been issued for your arrest can be approached in various ways, each with its own considerations.
Is there a warrant out for my arrest? Continue Reading »
People are often upset, rightly so, and sometimes wrongly so, about the way in which they have been treated in police investigations. A lot of people who come to us after a particularly stressful interaction with the police want to file a complaint against the officer. And you have a right to file a complaint
If I file a complaint against an officer, will that help me with my case? Continue Reading »
You’ve had four pints over 3 hours with your friends at a Nanaimo pub and weigh 180 lbs. You’re not over the limit but you’re pulled over by the Mounties and made to blow. You blow in the breathalyzers and then it thinks and thinks and finally, after an agonizing wait, the readingcomes back as
I was under but blew over Continue Reading »
In many blog posts, we have discussed how easy it is for the Crown to prove driving while prohibited offences. There are only three things that must be proven: that you were prohibited, that you knew you were prohibited, and that you drove. The Motor Vehicle Act sets out evidentiary shortcuts that allow the prosecution
Top 5 mistakes police make on driving while prohibited charges Continue Reading »
Driving While Prohibited cases are notoriously easy for the prosecution to prove. This is because a very low standard of evidence is necessary to prove the offence. But, a lot of times the evidence required to prove somebody is guilty of driving while prohibited is evidence actually provided by the driver themselves based on their
Top 5 Mistakes people make when charged with driving while prohibited Continue Reading »
Impaired driving investigations are complex. There are certain rules the police must follow in a DUI investigation, and if they don’t, it can provide a defence in a DUI allegation. There are identifiable categories of mistakes that police can make. In this post, we will discuss the four mistakes that police sometimes make in DUI
The four mistakes that police make in DUI investigations Continue Reading »
It is very easy for police in BC to figure out who is prohibited from driving, as they have many different ways to determine this. As soon as you are issued a driving prohibition, it is uploaded into several different police computers. If a police officer issues the driving prohibition to you, it gets added
How do police know I am prohibited from driving? Continue Reading »
Many people end up with driving prohibitions during or just after the holidays due to some traffic infraction that brings with it a driving prohibition. Most drivers abide by the prohibition. Some think they can either cheat just a little or disregard the prohibition entirely. The truth about driving while prohibited is that the police
The truth about driving while prohibited Continue Reading »
