Supreme court ruling allows for evidence from a northern Ont. unlawful spot check to be admitted in court
The Supreme Court of Canada has reinstated the impaired driving conviction of a northern Ontario man, despite agreeing that his rights were breached during his arrest.
The case dates back to 2016 in Thessalon First Nation, when two Ontario Provincial Police constables saw a man drive an ATV out of a parking lot of a convenience store in the community.
Officers followed for about a minute and saw him pull into a private driveway nearby. They opted at that point to make a random sobriety check and noticed he was showing several signs of being impaired.
He had red eyes, smelled of alcohol, his knees were buckling and he appeared to be holding on to the side of the ATV with his right hand.
However, both OPP officers involved in the arrest testified they hadn’t seen signs he was impaired before making the random check in the driveway.
If they had grounds to believe he was impaired, the court ruled the arrest would have been legal.
But a random sobriety check is only permitted on public highways, not private property.
However, a 2019 ruling in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice said that on balance, it favoured allowing the police evidence to be used.
Otherwise, it would create a situation in which suspects could avoid impaired driving charges by driving onto private property if they saw police.
“Surely, the statutory authority afforded to police officers under … the Highway Traffic Act are not suspended by the mere fact that the driver of a motor vehicle succeeds in avoiding being stopped on a public street or highway,” the court ruled.
The suspect was then convicted of impaired driving, but that decision was overturned on appeal, in part because the court ruled the fact the arrest took place on private property “elevated appellant’s privacy rights.”
“Simply put, (the suspect) was in his driveway and not on a highway or public roadway,” the court ruled.
“There were no interests of the public that had to be protected at that point in time that would justify the actions of the police authorities or couch them with implied license or authority under the common law.”
A 2021 ruling by the Ontario Court of Appeal upheld the acquittal and the Crown then appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC).
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
In its decision, released March 23, the SCC ruled that it agreed the suspect was not “a driver” as defined by the Highway Traffic Act.
“Even if it can be said that he had care or control of the ATV, he was not on a highway when the police effected the stop,” the court said.
“Therefore, the police stop was unauthorized.”
However, the SCC said the breach was not severe enough that all evidence gathered by police had to be thrown out, especially since the rules regarding sobriety checks on private property were “uncertain” when the OPP made the arrest.
“The unlawful police stop constituted a marked, although not egregious, intrusion on (the suspect’s) charter‑protected interests and moderately favours exclusion of the evidence,” the court said.
“However, the evidence collected by the police was reliable and crucial to the Crown’s case and impaired driving is a serious offence. Admission of the evidence would better serve the truth‑seeking function of the criminal trial process and would not damage the long‑term repute of the justice system.”
Read the full ruling here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Celine Dion delivers stirring comeback performance at Paris Olympics opening ceremony
Against the rainy Paris night sky, Celine Dion staged the comeback of her career with a powerful performance from the Eiffel Tower to open the Olympic Games.
Jasper wildfire: 'Several weeks' before residents can return, premier says
Premier Danielle Smith said Friday afternoon in Hinton while weather conditions are cooler, the Jasper fire is still considered out of control and that Jasper residents can expect to be away from their homes 'for several weeks.'
Missing 3-year-old boy found dead in creek in Mississauga: police
A three-year-old boy has been found dead a day after he went missing in a park in Mississauga, Peel police say.
Irish museum pulls Sinead O'Connor waxwork after just one day due to backlash
An Irish museum will withdraw a waxwork of singer-songwriter Sinéad O'Connor just one day after installing it, following a backlash from her family and the public, it told CNN in a statement on Friday.
Winnipeg senior's account overdrawn for $146,000 water bill
A Winnipeg senior is getting soaked with a six-figure water bill.
Turpel-Lafond won't sue CBC over Cree heritage report that took 'heavy toll': lawyer
The lawyer for a former judge whose claims to be Cree were questioned in a CBC investigation says his client is not considering legal action against the broadcaster after the Law Society of British Columbia this week backed her claims of Indigenous heritage.
Driver charged after flashing high beams at approaching police
Orillia OPP arrested and charged a driver with impaired driving after flashing their high beams.
Major Canadian bank experiences direct deposit outage on payday
Scotiabank says it has fixed a technical issue that impacted direct deposits on Friday morning.
FBI says Trump was indeed struck by bullet during assassination attempt
Nearly two weeks after Donald Trump’s near assassination, the FBI confirmed Friday that it was indeed a bullet that struck the former president’s ear, moving to clear up conflicting accounts about what caused the former U.S. president’s injuries after a gunman opened fire at a Pennsylvania rally.