Drinking and Boating Part 1: Yo Ho Ho and a Conviction for Impaired - Canada
August 19, 2011 By Aitken Robertson Professional Corporation
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Drink And The Devil Had Done for The Rest Yo Ho Ho And A Bottle of Rum. Boating season is upon is. For some, this is also the start of gin and tonic season. Take note: in Ontario, drinking and boating can cost you your driver's license.
Drinking and boating in Ontario triggers the same penalties as does drinking and driving. In both cases, you don’t even have to be over the legal limit of .08 to lose your driver’s license; you just have to be in the so-called “warning range” of between .05 and .08.
Here’s how it works.
The driver of a motor vehicle or the operator of a vessel is stopped by police and asked to provide a breath sample and “blows” 50 or over, (indicating that the concentration of alcohol in his or her blood is 50 milligrams or more of alcohol in 100 milliliters of blood). The police officer may request that the person surrender his or her driver’s license. For how long do you lose your license in this scenario? If it’s your first tie, your license will be suspended for 3 days. Second time 7 days, and third time or more than third time, the suspension will be for thirty days. There is also a $150 fine each time.
Drivers and boaters caught twice face mandatory alcohol education and treatment programs, in addition to the suspension and fine. Caught a third time and you face, after the 30 day suspension and the fine, having to do the alcohol education and treatment programs and having the ignition interlock device installed in your car for 6 months – all at your own expense. Remember, this is the penalty imposed even if you are not over the legal limit of 80mgs. What this means for most people, is that you can have fewer than two drinks, and lose your license.
What if you blow over 80, impaired, or refuse? There is an immediate 90-days Administrative Driver’s License Suspension.
If you are then convicted, the penalties are:
• for a first offense, to a fine of not less than $1000,
• for a second offense, to imprisonment for not less than 30 days, and
• for each subsequent offense, to imprisonment for not less than 120 days.
Your driver’s license will be suspended for one year up to a lifetime and you face:
• mandatory alcohol assessment, education or treatment, and follow-up;
• Ignition Interlock device condition on your driver’s license for one year to up to a lifetime.
These penalties apply to anyone who is caught drinking and operating motorized as well as non-motorized vessels, including power boats, canoes, kayaks, jet-skis, sailboats, dinghies and other inflatable boats and rafts. In terms of Care or Control cases, portaging a canoe or running the boat lift while impaired might be enough to get you charged. One brew in a canoe may mean you cannot drive to work Monday morning.
Pretty sobering isn’t it?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Lavinia Inbar, B.A. (Hons), M.A., J.D.
Lavinia Inbar
Call to the Bar, Ontario 2000
B.A. (Hons.), summa cum laude, Dean's List, 1982, McMaster University
M.A., McMaster University, 1984
J.D. University of Toronto, 1998
One of the six criminal defense lawyers at Aitken Robertson practicing in offices throughout Ontario.
Copyright Aitken Robertson Professional Corporation
More information about Aitken Robertson Professional Corporation
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
Here’s how it works.
The driver of a motor vehicle or the operator of a vessel is stopped by police and asked to provide a breath sample and “blows” 50 or over, (indicating that the concentration of alcohol in his or her blood is 50 milligrams or more of alcohol in 100 milliliters of blood). The police officer may request that the person surrender his or her driver’s license. For how long do you lose your license in this scenario? If it’s your first tie, your license will be suspended for 3 days. Second time 7 days, and third time or more than third time, the suspension will be for thirty days. There is also a $150 fine each time.
Drivers and boaters caught twice face mandatory alcohol education and treatment programs, in addition to the suspension and fine. Caught a third time and you face, after the 30 day suspension and the fine, having to do the alcohol education and treatment programs and having the ignition interlock device installed in your car for 6 months – all at your own expense. Remember, this is the penalty imposed even if you are not over the legal limit of 80mgs. What this means for most people, is that you can have fewer than two drinks, and lose your license.
What if you blow over 80, impaired, or refuse? There is an immediate 90-days Administrative Driver’s License Suspension.
If you are then convicted, the penalties are:
• for a first offense, to a fine of not less than $1000,
• for a second offense, to imprisonment for not less than 30 days, and
• for each subsequent offense, to imprisonment for not less than 120 days.
Your driver’s license will be suspended for one year up to a lifetime and you face:
• mandatory alcohol assessment, education or treatment, and follow-up;
• Ignition Interlock device condition on your driver’s license for one year to up to a lifetime.
These penalties apply to anyone who is caught drinking and operating motorized as well as non-motorized vessels, including power boats, canoes, kayaks, jet-skis, sailboats, dinghies and other inflatable boats and rafts. In terms of Care or Control cases, portaging a canoe or running the boat lift while impaired might be enough to get you charged. One brew in a canoe may mean you cannot drive to work Monday morning.
Pretty sobering isn’t it?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Lavinia Inbar, B.A. (Hons), M.A., J.D.
Lavinia Inbar
Call to the Bar, Ontario 2000
B.A. (Hons.), summa cum laude, Dean's List, 1982, McMaster University
M.A., McMaster University, 1984
J.D. University of Toronto, 1998
One of the six criminal defense lawyers at Aitken Robertson practicing in offices throughout Ontario.
Copyright Aitken Robertson Professional Corporation
More information about Aitken Robertson Professional Corporation
View all articles published by Aitken Robertson Professional Corporation
Disclaimer: While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this publication, it is not intended to provide legal advice as individual situations will differ and should be discussed with an expert and/or lawyer. For specific technical or legal advice on the information provided and related topics, please contact the author.
