Posts Tagged ‘DUI lawyer’

Did you know that in Canada, our DUI laws can result in being arrested and found guilty for operating a motorized scooter while drunk?

How could this be you ask? Well, the definition of a motor vehicle is any vehicle that is drawn, propelled or driven by any means other than muscular power.

In R. v. Shanahan the accused while drunk in a motorized scooter crossed a road. While doing so, the police saw him and pulled him over. He failed a breathalyzer (approved screening device), and was arrested for DUI.

One piece of important information in this case is the defendant could move about on his own some – approximately one hundred to one hundred and fifty meters.

At trial, J.D. Wake J. (the Honourable Judge) held the scooter was a motor vehicle as defined by the Criminal Code. The trial judge then gave the accused an opportunity to apply for relief under section 15 (equality rights) of the Charter.

The equality rights hearing addressed the following two issues.

1. were the defendant’s equality rights infringed?

J.D. Wake J. held that the Canada DUI laws (section 253 of the Criminal Code) does not make a distinction between people reliant on motorized wheelchairs and people who don’t need motorized scooters.

This is the key finding: the Court held that since the defendant was mobile somewhat, that he was not sufficiently distinct from able-bodied folks that consumed too much alcohol.

Also, people walking and impaired in public places can be charged with other criminal offences other than a DUI laws such as mischief.

2. What about the dignity of the defendant under s. fifteen of the Charter?

The Honourable Judge found the following regarding the accused’s dignity.

“The argument in favour of striking down s.253 seems to be that the dignity of a disabled person can only be sustained if he is afforded the right to behave with a lack of dignity. In my view s.15 of the Charter should not be used to support the result of such inverted reasoning.”

At the end of the day, Canada DUI laws mean a person cannot be drunk while operating a motorized wheelchair.

Consider these aspects:

This specific case involved someone not totally disabled. Therefore, the outcome could be different if a person was 100 percent disabled.

Are people impaired on pain medication not able to use motorized wheelchairs outside of their home? I simply pose this question, I don’t know the answer.

Lastly, it’s a Canada DUI law that you can be found guilty of drunk driving if sitting in the driver’s seat while car is stationary. Does the same apply to a stationary motorized personal device?

If you’ve been charged with a crime such as DUI in BC, visit Vancouver defence lawyer website to learn more about Canada DUI laws and how Dykstra & Company can help you.

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Every day people are arrested by the cops for minor drug charges, minor offenses, and because they have outstanding warrants. Most of these people aren’t bad people, they just make bad decisions. And many of these people (trust me on this, I’m a Seattle DUI attorney) could have avoided the problem if they would have only known the proper way to interact with the cops. If you’re here and interested, today is your lucky day, because I’m going to tell you how to deal with the cops.

To help you understand what to do I’m going to give you a typical example of how people get in trouble. It usually starts with someone that is walking around minding their own business. Nothing about them demonstrates criminal activity is going on. But, there is a cop around, and he decides to wander up and start a conversation with you. He asks where you’re going, what you’re doing, and for your I.D.

You comply with the cop and enter into a conversation. You’re nervous, after all, because you have a small amount of marijuana on you that you use recreationally. You don’t want the cop to know, so you go along with his questions. You give him your ID, even though you know you have a warrant for failing to appear for an illegal fishing charge. Cop see warrant, arrests you, finds drugs, and busts you.

In this case the courts have ruled that the cop has not seized you. This is referred to as a “social contact” because in the court’s eyes the encounter is completely voluntary and the cop has not acted in any way to make you think you couldn’t just end the conversation and walk away (except for the fact that he’s a cop!). Seattle criminal attorneys don’t like this rule because it’s one that doesn’t work out in the real world.

To get yourself out of this situation what are you supposed to do? Can you just walk away from the cop without talking to him? Won’t he track you down and arrest you? If you don’t talk to him, will he automatically assume you are guilty? The short answer is yes, you should just walk away. You could also tell the cop you don’t want to talk.

If you follow these rules and hold strong when the cops get angry, you should be able to walk away without any problems. If the office does arrest you, which happens from time to time, a good Seattle criminal attorney should be able to get the evidence suppressed.

Walking away from a cop is not easy. It takes some real grit to do it, particularly because it is highly probable that you will end up being arrested by the cop. The good thing about it, though is that if you don’t walk away, you’re probably going to get arrested anyway, so why not take a chance? When the cops come up, just keep on walking.

Looking to find a great Seattle DUI attorney? Then visit us to find the best advice on finding the right Seattle DUI defense attorney for you.

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