Each holiday season, the O.P.P and other police forces are out conducting R.I.D.E. stops in order to combat drinking and careless driving. Their goal is to have zero fatalities caused by impaired driving, over the holiday season.
The Festive R.I.D.E. program runs from November 24, 2014 to January 2, 2014.
Here’s what you need to know about going through a R.I.D.E. stop in Ontario this season:
EXPECT TO BE STOPPED
R.I.D.E. stops will be set up by police at strategic locations, just around a curve, over a crest of a hill, or near a main intersection where traffic funnels through. These locations will be chosen either because there has been a high incidence of impaired drivers or it may just be at a spot where an approaching motorist has no chance of avoiding being stopped.
You should expect to be stopped over this festive season. Knowing that, you should make sure you never leave home without your driver’s licence. Also ensure that inside your car, there is a copy of the ownership for the vehicle and a current copy of the insurance pink card.
BE AWARE OF WHAT THE OFFICER MAY OR MAY NOT ASK OF YOU
Asking you if you had anything to drink is a lawful inquiry. Asking you where you are heading or coming from are not appropriate questions. Asking you to produce your driver’s licence, ownership, or insurance is a lawful inquiry. Asking you what is in the trunk or in that duffle bag on the passenger seat is not appropriate.
How you handle the officer’s inquiry is up to how much you value your privacy. It is not advisable to consent to a search of yourself or your vehicle at any time. A lawful search by the police only follows an arrest, and that search must be connected to evidence of the offence to which you are arrested.
BE AWARE OF THE WARNING SIGNS THE OFFICER IS LOOKING FOR
Approaching the R.I.D.E. stop with all your windows open is a dead giveaway. Empty cans or bottles in the back seat or cup holder can easily lead to a “please step out of the car” command. Chewing a wad of gum the size of a dish cloth or munching on 47 breath mints can all lead to an officer’s suspicion that you may not be forthright in the amount of drinks you claim to have consumed.
THE LEGAL LIMIT EXPLAINED
Driving impaired or at .08 (more than 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood) is an offence under the Criminal Code. If you fail the breath test or if you refuse to take the breath test, you will receive an immediate 90-day administrative driver’s licence suspension. You will also be subject to an immediate seven-day vehicle impoundment.
If you blow in the WARN range (.05 to .08), you will receive an immediate driver’s licence suspension for three days for your first occurrence, 7 days plus a remedial alcohol-education program for your second offence if within five years, or 30 days plus the remedial alcohol-treatment program plus an ignition interlock condition on you licence for the third and subsequent occurrence if within five years.
If you hold a G1, G2, or are 21 and under with a G, you are required to have a zero blood alcohol level.
For more info about the legal limit and impaired driving see the Ministry’s website.
Just remember, it’s best not to drink and drive what-so-ever. If you find yourself facing an impaired driving charge, call us to set up an appointment to talk with our lawyers.
Curtis Rutt, M.B. is the owner of Bulwark Legal Services. He has been a police officer for over 20 years and has knowledge of what the police look for in a RIDE program. Curtis can be reached at info@bulwarklegal.ca
