With more than 7,300 impaired driving charges laid across the province so far this year, police are cracking down on drinking and driving by implementing mandatory alcohol screening.
Starting on Tuesday, police in Ontario will be able to demand a breath sample from any lawfully stopped driver to determine whether that person has been drinking alcohol. Previously, officers would first need reasonable suspicion that a motorist had been drinking before a breath test could be administered. A driver who refuses to provide a breath sample could be subject to a criminal charge with a mandatory minimum fine.
The changes are part of a new provincial law, Bill C-46, which comes into effect on Tuesday.
"The new mandatory alcohol screening serves as an important deterrent to drivers who are impaired by alcohol, including those who believe they can avoid detection by police. So far this year, alcohol and/or drugs have been a factor in the deaths of 41 people on OPP-patrolled roads," said Interim OPP Commissioner Gary Couture said in a media release. "Every person who uses our roads has the right to be safe. The OPP fully supports this and any other legislation that enhances our ability to reduce the number of preventable deaths attributed to this deadly driving behaviour."
Under the new legislation, drivers impaired by alcohol will also face higher mandatory minimum fines and some higher maximum penalties. Under the new laws, anyone caught driving while impaired-alcohol will face the mandatory minimum penalties:
- First offence - blood alcohol content (BAC) of 80-119 mg: mandatory minimum $1,000 fine
- First offence - BAC of 120-159 mg: mandatory minimum $1,500 fine
- First offence - BAC of 160 mg or more: mandatory minimum $2,000 fine
- First offence of refusal to be tested: mandatory minimum $2,000 fine
- Second offence: mandatory minimum 30 days imprisonment
- Third and subsequent offences: mandatory minimum 120 days imprisonment