Drinking and Driving | Examples Of Favourable Verdicts

Toronto Criminal Defence Lawyer - Tushar K. Pain

Examples of Criminal Cases won by Tushar K. Pain

Drinking and Driving This category of offences includes ‘impaired driving’, ‘over 80’, ‘refuse to provide breath sample’, ‘impaired driving causing bodily harm or death’ and others. In Ontario, the Crown’s Office generally takes a zero-tolerance approach to these cases. There is seldom any room for negotiation and to avoid a conviction, most cases must be won at trial. The defence of such cases can involve complex issues but thorough preparation often increases the chances of an acquittal.


Cases Involving Drinking and Driving: R. v. Tara Reid Tara went out one evening to a social and drank a little too much. She made the unfortunate decision to drive home. On her way, she was pulled over for speeding. The officer smelled alcohol on her breath and she was ultimately charged with 'over 80'. Tara's blood alcohol concentration was more than double the legal limit. R. v. Don Newman Don, a university student, went out drinking one night. On his way home, he crashed his car into a lamp post and the car caught on fire. Don was rescued but had broken his neck. He was charged with impaired driving and over 80. After many months of negotiation with the Crown, it eventually agreed to accept a plea to careless driving. R v. H.K. Hugh Kirby was charged with impaired driving and driving “over 80”. The case against him appeared to be fairly damning. At the start of the trial, an application was made to have the case dismissed for unreasonable delay. The application was dismissed and the trial proceeded. It was adjourned to another date to continue. On that date it was not completed either and was adjourned to a third date. At that time, the application for unreasonable delay was renewed. The charge was ultimately dismissed. R. v. S.L. Early Saturday morning, Sue Lim was at home by herself having a few drinks. She discovered that she was out of cigarettes and decided to make a quick run to the convenience store. On the way she hit a parked car. Panicked, she tried to drive off but the police arrived and charged her with impaired driving, over 80, and failing to remain at the scene of an accident - all criminal offences. Sue was extremely concerned about the impact of a criminal record and how it might affect her employment. Following a series of meetings with the Crown’s Office, it finally agreed to drop the criminal charges in exchange for a guilty plea to the charge of careless driving – a non-criminal offence. Sue Lim was extremely relieved. R. v. S.A. Shelley Astaire got charged with 'over 80'—her third drinking and driving offence. Her readings were fairly high at nearly twice the legal limit. If she was convicted a third time, she would face a minimum of 90 days in jail. She needed to avoid jail in order to keep her job. R v. E.M. Eric Milton was an elementary school teacher who found himself charged with criminal drinking and driving offences. A criminal record could mean the end of a long and productive career as a school teacher. He simply had to beat the charge. Read the legal arguments and the Court's final verdict. R. v. L.D. Lawrence Donald was charged with drinking and driving. The legally permissible blood alcohol concentration is below 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. Lawrence's blood alcohol concentration was 120. Lawrence didn't know how he was going to beat the charge. He just knew that he had to. Ultimately, his acquittal turned on the wording the arresting officer used to demand the breath sample. R v. D.C. Throughout the evening Daniela Carter and her boyfriend had been drinking. At some point in the evening, the two of them started arguing about their relationship. The argument became heated. Ms. Carter became extremely distraught. She ran out of her boyfriend's place wearing only her housecoat and then got into her car to drive home. On her way home, she was pulled over by a police officer, investigated, and charged with "impaired driving" and "over 80". Ms. Carter was going through a difficult time in her life and could not afford a criminal record. She came to me to help her fight the charges. At trial, we brought a Charter application claiming that the arresting officer did not have reasonable and probable grounds to take the course of action that he did against Ms. Carter. The trial judge agreed and both charges were dismissed. R v. S.S. On a cold, October night Sharmaine Shockley was returning from a Halloween party. She got lost on the way home and pulled over to check her map. A police cruiser pulled up behind her to make sure she was okay. That's when the officer smelled alcohol on her breath. Ms. Shockley was asked to step out of the car. She was then arrested and charged with "impaired driving" and "over 80". At trial, I argued that the certificate containing her blood-alcohol readings was inadmissible because it contained an error. I also argued that the symptoms observed by the officer did not amount to proof beyond a reasonable doubt that Ms. Shockley's ability to drive was impaired by alcohol. The trial judge agreed and acquitted Ms. Shockley of both charges. R v. S.D. Sheldon Dobbs was an executive in a highly successful company. The nature of his employment required that he have absolutely no criminal record. He found himself charged with 'impaired driving' and 'over 80' after a night of holiday celebrations. If convicted, he was convinced that he would lose his job. Read the Court's final verdict. R. v. S.C. Sam Carrington, a successful lawyer, found himself charged with drinking and driving. If convicted, he would not only be saddled with a criminal record, but he could lose his licence to practice law as well. The stakes were very high for Sam. Sam came to me for help. Given Sam's situation, we decided that the charge had to be fought. At trial, I got the breath test results excluded. As a result, the charge was dismissed and Sam was acquitted.
Read what clients involved in this kind of case have to say about Tushar K. Pain: Stephanie Romano Sam Singh, Vaughan Don, Waterloo H.K., Toronto S.S., Oakville Koran M., Toronto Jesus Corona, Toronto Requested No Name, Toronto S.A., Mississauga P.B., Toronto G.R., Thornhill S.S., Oakville Daniela C. , Toronto L.D., Barrie S.D., Toronto

You're Invited to Call or E-mail
If you've been charged with a crime - or think you might be charged in the future - you're invited to call me. I'll answer your questions and explain how you can protect your legal rights. I will gladly talk with you on the telephone or in my office. You're invited to send your e-mail to me at tkpain@torontocriminaldefence.com or call me at 416-410-4838.

Tushar K. Pain, Toronto Criminal Defence Lawyer
393 University Avenue ~ Suite 2000 ~ Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1E6
tel: 416.410.4838 fax: 416.410.5532 email: tkpain@torontocriminaldefence.com

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