A five-time repeat impaired driver, who allegedly critically injured a civilian in a four-vehicle collision in Ontario, has been released on bail. Kyla Lee, a criminal defence lawyer, says the courts will look for the ‘least restrictive sanctions’ to release someone.
“Even though this person has a history and they’re a five-time repeat offender, on this incident, they’re not facing a reverse onus on bail. They’re presumed to be innocent, this is treated as though they are innocent and the burden is on the crown to justify why they should be held in detention based on this case and that individual.”
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“If we start to require everybody who’s arrested and charged with impaired driving to have a bail hearing and to prove why they should be released, our jails are going to be overflowing.”
“I think that there’s no real way to eliminate impaired driving until we do have something in the vehicle that prevents you from starting it if you have alcohol in your body. That’s going to be the only way.”
