Month: July 2018

On July 30, 2018 I was asked to take part in a panel discussion hosted by the BC Independent Cannabis Association. You can watch a video of the discussion, which was fascinating, at the above link.

In this week’s episode of Driving Law, I sit down with Tim Schewe, a retired police officer and founder of the DriveSmartBC Blog. We talk about the past, present, and future of impaired driving investigations in this country. It was a really interesting discussion from someone who engaged in policing and traffic work from a time before there were approved screening devices, to when they were introduced, and to his opinion on the future of random breath testing.

You can find the podcast on iTunes or SoundCloud!

Good news, drivers. A new defence has been established for the charge of using an electronic device while driving.
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Courts tend to be very stringent when it comes to enforcing this offence. A BC government PR campaign against distracted driving has not helped the situation. The courts have taken a very broad interpretation of what constitutes “use” of an electronic device.

This week’s roundup of Weird and Wacky Wednesday legal cases looks at the least sexy sex act you can commit, and how it got a lawyer suspended from the bar for two years. Next, the case of a man facing thousands of dollars in fines over a stupid decision involving his boat. And finally, we revisit cannibalism because eating people never gets old.

Police in Hamilton, Ontario are supposedly sounding the alarm after an increase in drug-impaired driving arrests. But surprisingly, the police are actually laying the blame where it appropriately lies: at their own feet. Okay, so they are being slightly more nuanced than that. The police in Hamilton are claiming that their “better training” is helping them to spot more impaired drivers who need to be taken off the road. They are celebrating the increased number of arrests.

And I want to break that down.

This week’s episode of Driving Law begins with an interesting discussion with Grant Gottgetreu about police discipline and, in particular, the New Westminster Police Constable who is facing a disciplinary review with the Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner after she was issued an Immediate Roadside Prohibition.

In the second half of the episode, I am joined by Paul Doroshenko of Acumen Law Corporation. We discuss another issue of police discipline, involving two officers who were caught on camera using a “coin-toss” app to make a decision about whether or not to arrest. Then, we ponder the possibility of police seizing and using biometric data on cell phones in drug impaired driving cases.

Have a listen on SoundCloud or on iTunes!

The Federal Government has announced a commitment to nearly $1 Million in funding for research into cannabis impairment. And while it is nice to see the government finally direct money toward studying this important issue, it is also a little bit frustrating. In reality, the decision to do this, at this stage of the game is far too little, too late.