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
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
MPs agree Canadian gov't should improve new disability benefit
The federal government needs to safeguard the incoming Canada Disability Benefit from clawbacks and do more to ensure it actually meets the stated aim of lifting people living with disabilities out of poverty, MPs from all parties agree.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL has suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca
New charges for Ont. woman who previously admitted to defrauding doulas
The Brantford, Ont. woman who was previously sentenced to house arrest after admitting to deceiving doulas has been charged again in connection to a new victim.