In Winnipeg, a drunk cop rear-ended a car and killed the woman driving the car. He refused a breathalyzer and eventually plead down the charges and got no jail time. Essentially he killed a woman and got a community sentence.
Quote:
Breathalyser skips rising
Fallout from Taman case
By CHRIS KITCHING, SUN MEDIA
van in St. Boniface. (Jason Halstead, Sun Media)
Winnipeg police have noticed more suspected drunk drivers are refusing to provide breath samples in light of a recent, well-publicized court case.
Police arrested four people during the first two days of the holiday Checkstop campaign, and all four are charged with refusing a breathalyser. There were two fatal collisions in Winnipeg recently where the drivers refused to provide a breath or blood sample.
Some drivers may believe they may improve their chances of escaping a court conviction by refusing.
Patrol Sgt. Rob Riffel said police are not concerned about the trend.
"There's nothing to be gained by refusing," Riffel said.
Legally, a person is allowed to refuse a breath or blood sample request. If convicted, the penalty for refusing is the same for having a blood-alcohol level over the legal limit.
The subject of breathalysers was in the news recently during a case involving former Winnipeg police officer Derek Harvey-Zenk.
He was charged with impaired driving causing death and refusing a breathalyser in the death of Crystal Taman, who was killed in February 2005 when Harvey-Zenk's pickup truck crashed into her car. The former police officer took a plea bargain, taking those charges off the table.
LOBBYING
Mothers Against Drunk Driving is lobbying the federal government to make blood tests mandatory for drivers involved in crashes where a person is injured or killed.
Meanwhile, two Winnipeg men were charged with impaired driving and refusing a breathalyser Thursday night.
The men were not arrested at Checkstops but the arrests will be included in the checkstop statistics, Riffel said. Police said an eastbound vehicle on Templeton Avenue drove into the back of a parked vehicle about 10 p.m. Thursday. A 60-year-old man has been charged. About 30 minutes later, a vehicle knocked over a fence and hit a tree in the area of a parking lot in the 800-block of Allegheny Drive. A 46-year-old man has been charged.
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