The Law About Drinking & Driving

Andy and Sam, both grade twelve students, are looking forward to an exciting weekend. Andy’s parents are out of town and have agreed to let him use their car while they’re away. Andy has just passed his G2 driving test and is eager to cruise around town with his friends.     

One of Andy and Sam’s friends is having a huge party this weekend. Because the house party is in another neighborhood about thirty minutes away from where Andy and Sam live, Andy happily offers to drive to the party. On the way, Sam shows Andy the six-pack of beer he snuck out of his house. Andy refuses, saying he’s not going to drink at the party because he’ll be driving later.

A couple hours later, Andy feels a bit out of place, as everyone else at the party is drinking. He decides to have one beer, thinking that he will still be able to drive safely if he only has one. However, after having the first beer, Andy has three more, thinking that he might as well enjoy himself, and anyway, he feels fine.

As the party winds down, Sam and Andy decide to leave. Sam notices that Andy doesn’t look too steady, and stumbles a bit on the way to the car. When he learns that Andy has had four beers, he tells him that they should probably call a taxi or stay at their friend’s house, because he is too intoxicated to drive. Andy brushes him off, and tells him that he’s fine to drive home. Although Sam has a G2 licence, he knows that he has also had too much to drink to drive.

What are the legal ramifications of drinking and driving, specifically for young people under the age of 21, and for G2 drivers?

 http://www.voiceonline.com/drivers-fined-for-drunk-driving-earlier-will-not-get-refund/

Drinking and driving is a deadly combination and a serious issue. It can lead to injury and death to other drivers on the road as well as other passengers in the car. In fact, drinking and driving accounts for 25% of deaths in Ontario. For this reason, the legal ramifications are quite serious. There can be charges laid against the driver, fines and licence suspensions, jail time and a vehicle being impounded.

Ontario Law

In Ontario, the police have the power to (a) stop drivers at random to determine whether to test for alcohol (via a breath test) (b) suspend your driver’s licence for novice drivers and all young drives below the age of 21, who at roadside for recording  have over a zero blood alcohol concentration (BAC) or (c) suspend driver’s licence at roadside for recording 0.05  or over on a breath test and BAC for all other categories of drivers. This means that if you are under 21 years old, that regardless of which kind of licence you have (G, G1, G2), if you are caught with any alcohol in your blood, you will receive an immediate 24-hour roadside driver licence suspension.  You will likely then be charged with impaired driving.  If you are convicted of the charge, you can be fined between $60 and $500, and your licence can be suspended for 30 days.  If you are a young driver with only a G1 or G2 licence, you can face even stricter consequences, including being returned to the start of the Graduated Licencing System.  As Andy is only 16 years old and has just gotten his G2 license, he is considered a novice driver. This means that if he is caught drinking, he will be subject to any of the above. He may lose his G2 licence (which allows him to drive her friends unaccompanied by an adult) and be returned to the start of the licensing process.

Source: Ontario Ministry of Transportation Drinking and Driving Brochure 

Criminal Code of Canada

Andy can also face more serious consequences. Higher BACs (between 0.05-0.08, and above 0.08) lead to even more severe consequences. Impaired driving, which means driving while your ability is affected by alcohol or drugs, is a crime under the Criminal Code of Canada under Section 253(1)(a). Driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 (800mg of alcohol/100 mL of blood) or more is also a crime under Section 253(1)(b). Interestingly, the vehicle does not even have to be moving. The driver can even be charged if impaired behind the wheel, even if he/she has not started to drive and the keys are not in the ignition. 

The provisions of drinking and driving offence in the Criminal Code of Canada: Operation While Impaired

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; or

(b) Having consumed alcohol in such a quantity that the concentration in the person’s blood exceeds eighty milligrams of alcohol in one hundred millilitres of blood.

According to Section 254 of the Criminal Code, if the police have reasonable grounds to suspect that a person is under the influence of alcohol, it is an offence to refuse to take a physical coordination test or breath test.

Youth Criminal Justice Act

Since Andy is a youth (between the ages of 12-17), the Youth Criminal Justice Act will apply to him, and not the Criminal Code offences. As a result, it is not possible to predict as clearly what sentence he could get if found guilty. However, this also changes the way the police officer must interact with Johnny. For example, s. 146 of the YCJA imposes a different standard for obtaining evidence, not binding youth to certain written and/or oral statements that were obtained when the youth didn’t have the opportunity to speak with a parent and/or a lawyer.  Also, police must speak to youth using words that the youth is able to understand.  

REMEMBER:

Every injury and death caused by impaired driving is entirely preventable. There are other options and if you are ever in the same situation as Andy and Sam do not forget: Call a taxi, call a friend or a parent, walk home if you or carpool with others who haven't been drinking. Don't ever let your friends drive drunk. Take their keys, have them stay the night, or do whatever else is necessary - but don't let them drink and drive!

This blog scenario was written by Rachel Kattapuram, a first year law student at the University of Toronto and a volunteer on the JFCY's PLE Team. The legal content was written by Lauren Grossman, a first year law student at the University of Toronto who is volunteering at JFCY as the PLE team leader through her law school's Pro Bono Students Canada program. All legal content was reviewed by a JFCY lawyer. 

The Law and Youth Novice Drivers in Ontario: Part 3

Being young and driving with a G2 license in Ontario: What the law says

This is Part Three of a three-part series on the law around novice driving and graduated licensing in Ontario. To see the scenarios on which this part is based, click here and here. The legal info was written by JFCY. 

Image source: http://www.ontario.ca/driving-and-roads/buy-or-sell-used-vehicle-ontario

Novice Drivers in Ontario

Before getting behind the wheel, youth novice drivers should be informed of various different laws, including the G2 License rules, the Highway Traffic Act, the Liquor Licence Act and the Criminal Code ofCanada.  

G2 License rules and possible offences

The G2 License rules come from regulations under the Highway Traffic Act, specifically the Regulation called Driver’s Licenses, which sets out most of the rules regarding G2 licenses.

Number of Passengers:

Novice drivers must be careful about following the rules on number of passengers allowed while driving with a G2 license. During the day, the number of passengers is limited to the number of working seatbelts. However, at night the rules are more restrictive.

If a novice driver has had their G2 license for less than six months and is aged 19 and under, s/he cannot carry a passenger aged 19 and under between midnight and 5 a.m. After the first six months, G2 drivers aged 19 and under cannot carry more than three passengers aged 19 and under between midnight and 5 a.m.

These restrictions do not apply to a G2 driver aged 19 and under if the G2 driver is accompanied by a G class driver in the front seat, or the passengers are immediate family members.

Under the graduated licensing system, what are the consequences of drinking and driving for novice drivers?

Drinking and driving leads to accidents, including death and injury.  It can also lead to charges being laid against the driver, fines and license suspensions, and the impoundment of a vehicle.

In Ontario, if you are age 21 and under, there is a zero blood alcohol concentration (BAC) rule while driving.  (See s. 44 of the Highway Traffic Act) This means that regardless of which kind of licence you have (G, G1, G2), if you are caught with any alcohol in your blood, you will receive an immediate 24-hour roadside driver licence suspension.  You will likely then be charged with impaired driving.  If you are convicted of the charge, you can be fined between $60 and $500, and your licence can be suspended for 30 days. There are also possible criminal charges (see below). 

If you are a young driver with a G1 or G2 licence, you can face even stricter consequences, including being returned to the start of the Graduated Licensing System.  For example, this means that if a young person has her/his G2 and is caught drinking, s/he may lose her G2 licence (which allows her/him to drive her friends unaccompanied by an adult) and be returned to the start of the licensing process.

Higher BACs (between 0.05-0.08, and above 0.08) lead to even more severe consequences.

Criminal Code offences

Across Canada, it is a criminal offence to operate a vehicle while impaired by alcohol or drugs and/or while having a blood alcohol content of 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood or more (called “0.08”).

With high blood alcohol levels, adults and youths may be charged with impaired driving. Impaired driving, which means driving while your ability is affected by alcohol or drugs, is a crime under the Criminal Code of Canada under Section 253(1)(a). Driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 or more is also a crime under Section 253(1)(b). Your vehicle does not even have to be moving; you can be charged if you are impaired behind the wheel, even if you have not started to drive. If convicted or found guilty, you will be sentenced by a court.  

It is also a criminal offence to refuse to provide a breathalyzer sample without a reasonable excuse. Not knowing you have to provide a sample, or saying that a lawyer told you not to blow for a breathalyzer are NOT reasonable excuses. This is covered by Section 254 of the Criminal Code which also explains how the breathalyzer process works.

If the person being charged is between the ages of 12 and 17, the Youth Criminal Justice Act will apply to them.  As a result it is not possible to predict as clearly what sentence he could get if found guilty. However, this also changes the way the police officer must interact with these young people. For example, s. 146 of the YCJA imposes a different standard for obtaining evidence, not binding youth to certain written and/or oral statements that were obtained when the youth didn’t have the opportunity to speak with a parent and/or alawyer.  Also, police must speak to youth using words that the youth is able to understand.  

Liquor License Act offences

It is an offence under s. 32 of the Liquor License Act to operate a motor vehicle while there is open alcohol in the car.  You can be charged even if you are not the person drinking and even if you have had nothing to drink at all.

Caught in a bind? What are some other options?

Sometimes youth and novice drivers chose to drink even though they had agreed to be the designated driver.  Now they have another decision to make: drive home or find alternative options.  If an impaired person chooses to drive home, they risk the safety of themselves, their friends, and others on the road.  They also risk being caught driving while impaired, either because of an accident or because they are stopped by a police officer, which could have a serious impact on their ability to drive in the future.  If they drive home drunk, they may also have to consider what will happen if their parents/guardians find out about what they have has done.

Instead of driving home, drivers who have been drinking can find out whether one of their friends has a parent or sober friend who would be willing to pick them up.  They can pick up the car in the morning.  If one of their friends lives nearby, everyone might be able to stay there for the night.  Or, they and their friends friends can share a cab – 1-888-TAXIGUY is a toll-free number which is available in 250 towns and cities across Ontario.  It connects callers directly to a partner taxicab in their city. 

This post was written by JFCY. 

JOYRIDING

Jessica, a 14-year-old high school student, wanted to go to the mall with her friends after school. Neither she nor her friends, being the same age as her, had a license to drive to the mall and the mall was too far to walk to. At the same time, some of her friends did not have money to spend for bus fare. Jessica then remembered that her parents have gone out of town for a couple of days and that her older sister would have a long day at school in university and thus would not be at home. 

With that in mind, there was a car parked in Jessica's garage without anyone using it. A thought came to her… she could always use her parents’ car and put more gas in to compensate to what she would be using that day before returning it home. In this case, no one in her family would ever find out that the car has been driven at all. At the same time, she thought that her allowance money being spent on gas would take her to more places in comparison to spending on different trips for bus fare. “A good idea,” Jessica thought.

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After school, Jessica and her friends decided to walk to her house, which was only a kilometer away from school. Jessica did not call her parents and her sister for permission since the likelihood of being able to drive the car without a license was zero. Jessica then walked into her parents’ room and grabbed the car key. She turned on the engine, opened the garage door, and reversed. With a full passenger car, Jessica was excited that she was able to drive her friends to the mall, especially those that did not have any money for bus fare. Also, it was quite thrilling for her since she had never driven a car before, though she was very familiar with go-karting and race car video games. What could go wrong anyways? She watched how her parents drove all the time whenever she was sitting in the front seat.

What is Joyriding?

Joyriding is a criminal offense that is punishable in court. It is a slang term given to an offence in the Criminal Code of Canada. This is an offence resembling theft which is described as taking a motor vehicle and operating it without the owner's consent.

The Criminal Code Offence:

Section 335 of the Criminal Code, an Offence Resembling Theft says: "Everyone who, without the consent of the owner, takes a motor vehicle or vessel with intent to drive, use, navigate or operate it or cause it to be driven, used, navigated or operated is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction."

Jessica’s friends can also be charged under this section for being aware of the situation: " ...[O]r is an occupant of a motor vehicle or vessel knowing that it was taken without the consent of the owner, is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction."

Youth Criminal Justice Act

Because Jessica and her friends are only 14, if charged, they will be charged under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.  A charge under the Act says that young people between the ages of 12 and 18 will be made to appear in Youth Justice Court. If Jessica or her friends are convicted, the given sentence will be decided by the penalties set out in the Youth Criminal Justice Act

Ontario Laws:

Jessica is also violating provincial laws by driving without a license. According to Ontario Highway Traffic Act, 37.(1) " No person under the age of sixteen years shall drive or operate a motor vehicle, street car, road-building machine, self-propelled implement of husbandry or farm tractor on a highway."

The scenario for this post was written by Karen Jacobe, a JFCY volunteer on the PLE Team.  The legal info was written by Lauren Grossman, a first-year law student at U of T who is volunteering at JFCY through her law school’s Pro Bono Students Canada program. All info was reviewed by a JFCY staff lawyer