CHARGED WITH A DUI IN STRATFORD?
DUI Lawyers in Stratford specialize in defending DUI and Impaired Driving charges. DUI Charges in Stratford are the same as those found across Ontario and Canada, for that matter. Criminal Law involves Federal legislation, meaning that each offence applies in every city and town in the country, including Stratford.
DUI Offences in Stratford (like everywhere else in Canada) include:
- 80 plus — If you have a blood alcohol concentration of at least 80 milligrams of alcohol for every 100 milliliters of blood, you will be charged with this particular offence.
- Impaired Driving — Impaired Driving involves an allegation that your ability to operate a conveyance (such as a vehicle) was at least slightly impaired by alcohol or drugs. Extreme impairment is not required to be charged or found guilty.
- Refusal / Fail to Provide Breath Sample – This charge is laid where an individual refuses or does not provide a sample after a lawful breath demand is made.
- Care or Control (Impaired or 80 plus) – You do not have to be found driving or even behind the wheel to be charged or convicted of a DUI in Stratford, due to the law on “care or control”. If you are found in the front seat of a vehicle, whether the engine is on or off, you will be presumed to be operating the vehicle.
VIRTUAL / REMOTE CASE MANAGEMENT – STRATFORD ONTARIO COURT OF JUSTICE
If you are charged with a DUI in Stratford, you will usually be released on an Undertaking to a Peace Officer, with a requirement to attend two dates:
- A date for fingerprinting
- A first appearance in Stratford Criminal Court (the Ontario Court of Justice)
At the time of writing this, individuals can attend their first appearance, and subsequent case management appearances, by ZOOM VIDEO.
Click the link HERE to review the Zoom login information for Stratford Criminal Court.
STRATFORD ONTARIO COURT OF JUSTICE – IMPORTANT CONTACT INFORMATION
Here are some key contacts for your DUI Charge in Stratford:
- Stratford Duty Counsel Office: gendchstratford@lao.on.ca or 519-273-8120 or call 1-800-668-8258 (central Legal Aid Ontario number)
- Provincial Crown: Stratford.Crown@ontario.ca or 226-921-5109
- Public Prosecution Service of Canada: PPSCLondonSPPC@ppsc-sppc.gc.ca or 519-645-2953
- Stratford courthouse: Stratford.Courthouse@ontario.ca or 519-271-9252
CONSEQUENCES OF BEING CHARGED WITH A DUI IN STRATFORD
If you are charged with a DUI or Impaired Driving Offence in Stratford, there are numerous consequences that will occur, both at the court level and outside of court.
From a Court perspective, the following penalties will arise for DUI Convictions in this city:
- FIRST TIME OFFENDERS –
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- For the offence of 80 plus or Impaired driving, a minimum fine of $1,000 and a 12 month driving prohibition
- For the offence of Refuse Breath Sample, a minimum fine of $2,000 and a 12 month driving prohibition
- SECOND TIME OFFENDERS –
- For second time offenders for any DUI offence in Stratford, a minimum penalty of a 30 day jail sentence and a 2 year driving prohibition applies
- REPEAT (OR SUBSEQUENT) OFFENDERS –
- For repeat offenders who already have at least two convictions, a minimum sentence of 120 days in jail and a 3 year driving prohibition applies
- VICTIM FINE SURCHARGES
- For any fine that is imposed, an additional financial penalty arises, called a Victim Fine Surcharge, which is always 30% of the total fine issued
Other consequences that exist outside of the Court process from a DUI conviction in Stratford include the following:
- A permanent criminal record
- Increases in, or loss of, insurance coverage
- Potential loss of employment
- The requirement to install an Ignition Interlock Device on your vehicle
- The requirement to complete a remedial / educational program (Back on Track)
STRATFORD CARE OR CONTROL LAWYER
As indicated above, to be charged or convicted of a DUI in Stratford, driving a vehicle is not an essential element of these offences.
An individual is presumed to operate (or drive) a vehicle if it is proved that the individual is observed to have occupied the driver seat, unless they can establish that they did not occupy the seat for the purpose of setting the vehicle in motion.
There are two ways in which care or control can be established:
- Using the presumption under s. 320.35, where the accused is found sitting in the front seat of the vehicle; or
- Proving “actual” care or control
Regarding actual care or control, criminal liability may attach where the Crown proves that the acts or conduct of the accused in relation to the motor vehicle could cause the vehicle to become a danger whether by setting the motor vehicle in motion or in some other way: R. v. Wren (2000), 2000 CanLII 5674 (ON CA), 144 C.C.C. (3d) 374 (Ont. C.A.).
An intention to drive the vehicle is not an essential element of the offence of care or control: Ford v. The Queen,1982 CanLII 16 (SCC), [1982] 1 S.C.R. 231, at pp. 248-49. It is, however, part of the conduct of the accused that is relevant to the determination of whether that conduct in relation to the motor vehicle had created a risk of danger: R v. Ruest, [2009] O.J. No. 5108 (C.A.).
According to the Supreme Court of Canada in R. v. Boudreault [2012] 3 S.C.R. 157, at para 33, the phrase “care or control” signifies three possible scenario:
- an intentional course of conduct associated with a motor vehicle
- By a person whose ability to drive is impaired, or whose blood alcohol level exceeds the legal limit
- In circumstances that create a real risk, as opposed to a remote possibility, of danger to persons or property. The risk of danger, as opposed to the intention to drive, is an essential element of the care or control offence
The risk of danger, according to Boudreault, can be explained as follows: The risk must be realistic and not just theoretically possible. But nor need the risk be probable, or even serious or substantial. To require that the risk be realistic is to establish a low threshold consistent with Parliament’s intention to prevent a danger to public safety. To require only that the risk k be theoretically possible is to adopt too low a threshold since it would criminalize unnecessarily a broad range of benign and inconsequential conduct. (paras. 34-35)
In Boudreault, the SCC held that in the absence of a contemporaneous intention to drive, a realistic risk of danger may arise in at least 3 ways:
- a) An inebriated individual who initially does not intend to drive may later, while still impaired, change his mind and proceed to do so
- b) An inebriated person behind the wheel may unintentionally set the vehicle in motion
- c) Through negligence, bad judgment or otherwise, a stationary or inoperable vehicle may endanger persons or property
HIRING AN EXPERIENCED STRATFORD DUI LAWYER
Andrew Captan is an experienced DUI Lawyer in Stratford, and has been practicing for over 10 years as a criminal defence lawyer in Impaired and DUI Law. Hiring Mr. Captan, you will get the following:
- Direct contact with an experienced Stratford DUI Lawyer, with no “middle man” and no delegation of important legal work
- Constant communication with a lawyer who will keep you appraised of your case
- Individualized fees that will involve a payment pan if you cannot afford a full, lump sum retainer
Call Andrew Captan at (647) 878 – 6355 or visit his website HERE.
Free Consultation
