Sam's Case — Over 80 & Impaired — Withdrawn

Client:  Sam S., Accused
Complainant:  Toronto Police Service
Charges:  over 80 and impaired driving

Background:  Sam had way too much to drink. Driving home, he slammed into the back of a taxi. The taxi driver called the police. Sam was arrested, provided breath samples over twice the legal limit, and was charged with the above drinking-and-driving offences.

READ THE POLICE REPORT

Goals:  Sam wanted to keep his licence and to avoid a criminal record.

Strategy — 1st Trial Date:  With Sam's readings so high, there was no negotiation (at least to start). I assessed the Crown's case as strong but we had little to lose by fighting. We plowed ahead. By the morning of the trial, eleven months had passed. But the Crown was not ready. Their star witness, the taxi driver, had just finished dental surgery. The Crown asked to adjourn the trial. The Judge agreed, adjourning the matter another 10 months.

READ THE ADJOURNMENT TRANSCRIPT

Strategy — 2nd Trial Date:  As a rule of thumb, once a case gets over 12 months old, it's in danger of being thrown out. We had 20 months and 28 days. We now had a solid defence. I filed and served a Charter motion asking that the case be thrown out because of a breach of Sam's rights under section 11(b) of the Charter.

Results:  The Crown was now ready to negotiate. They offered to withdraw the criminal charges if Sam plead guilty to careless driving under the Highway Traffic Act. The deal guaranteed that Sam would keep his licence and avoid a criminal record (though he would receive a fine and 6 demerit points). I was confident about winning without the deal, but not 100% sure. Wanting a guarantee of no criminal record and no suspension, Sam took the deal.

READ THE GUILTY PLEA TRANSCRIPT