Recent Cases

Vancouver Criminal Lawyer: Cathryn Moore

90 Day IRP – Refusal

The Facts:

The driver was pulled over by the police for going through a red light. The driver had difficulty rolling down the window. An odour of alcohol was detected on the driver’s breath. The driver admitted to the recent consumption of alcohol. A breath demand was made by the officer. The driver provided 6 samples of breath into the Approved Screening Device (ASD) but none were suitable breath samples. The officer deemed the driver to be refusing to provide a breath sample. The driver was issued a 90 Day Immediate Roadside Prohibition.

The Argument:

The driver made genuine efforts to provide a breath sample. The officer’s subjective decision to deem that the driver was intentionally failing to comply with the breath demand was based on a misinterpretation of what the officer was observing. The officer was not administering the Approved Screening Device (ASD) properly making it impossible for the officer to obtain a suitable breath sample.

The Result:

“When considering the evidence before me, I find that you had a reasonable excuse for failing to provide a breath sample.”

The 90-day Immediate Roadside Prohibition was revoked and the vehicle was released.