Hire A BC Lawyer When Charged With A DUI
If you use a motorized personal device in Canada, don’t get drunk and head out on the streets because you can be found guilty for impaired driving.How could this be you ask? Well, the definition of a motor vehicle is any vehicle that is drawn, propelled or driven by any means other than muscular power.These DUI laws stem from the Ontario case R. v. Shanahan. The facts are a man who was hurt, used a motorized scooter while drinking. He was spotted by police crossing a road erratically. He was “pulled over” and charged with impaired driving.An important point is the accused was not 100 percent disabled; he could walk 100 to 150 meters. Therefore, he was not entirely confined to a wheelchair.At trial, J.D. Wake J. (the Honourable Judge) held the scooter was a motor vehicle as defined by the Criminal Code. The trial judge then gave the accused an opportunity to apply for relief under section 15 (equality rights) of the Charter.The section 15 Charter breach hearing (equality rights) dealt with these two issues.1. Were the accused’s section 15 equality rights breached?J.D. Wake J. held that the Canada DUI laws (section 253 of the Criminal Code) does not make a distinction between people reliant on motorized wheelchairs and people who don’t need motorized scooters.This is the key finding: the Court held that since the defendant was mobile somewhat, that he was not sufficiently distinct from able-bodied folks that consumed too much alcohol.Moreover, able-bodied people who walk in public while drunk can be arrested and convicted for mischief - therefore lessening any distinction even more.2. Next, the Court addressed whether the defendant’s dignity was infringed, which is protected under section fifteen of the Charter.The honourable judge found the following regarding the accused’s dignity.”The argument in favour of striking down s.253 seems to be that the dignity of a disabled person can only be sustained if he is afforded the right to behave with a lack of dignity. In my view s.15 of the Charter should not be used to support the result of such inverted reasoning.”When all is said and one, a person operating a motorized scooter cannot be impaired.Considerations:The accused in R. V. Shanahan was not 100 percent bound to a wheelchair. If a case came to court involving someone 100 percent unable to walk and was 100 percent reliant on a motorized wheelchair, the result may be different applying section 15 of the Charter (equality rights). See point 3 below - how about being stationary?Are people impaired on pain medication not able to use motorized wheelchairs outside of their home? I simply pose this question, I don’t know the answer. If you are arrested for any type of DUI, talk to an experienced BC lawyer.Lastly, it’s a Canada DUI law that you can be found guilty of drunk driving if sitting in the driver’s seat while car is stationary. Does the same apply to a stationary motorized personal device?
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