On Saturday, January 21, 2017, members of the Niagara Regional Police Service contended with very foggy conditions, however managed to conduct R.I.D.E. checks within the city of Thorold and St. Catharines in which they stopped 575 vehicles.
Police say of those drivers stopped, 8 of them were required to provide breath samples for suspected alcohol consumption. One driver refused to comply with providing a sample of his breath and was charged with impaired driving for refusal. Another driver, provided a sample, however blew over the legal limit and was also charged with impaired driving. Both of these drivers received an automatic 90 day driver’s licence suspension and had their vehicles seized for 7 days. One other driver provided a sample of his breath, which resulted in an “Alert” and subsequently received a 3 day suspension.
During the RIDE check in Thorold an officer stopped a vehicle and discovered there were more passengers than operable seatbelts. When the extra passenger went to retrieve her identification, a male was found concealed in the trunk. This offence is considered a stunt under the Highway Traffic Act and as a result the driver was charged accordingly and also had their licence suspended and vehicle seized for 7 days.
In addition to the alcohol related charges and suspensions, officers issued several tickets to drivers in contravention of the Highway Traffic Act and Compulsory Automobile Insurance Act.
The Niagara Regional Police Service remain committed to reducing Impaired Driving Offences through education and the apprehension of offenders through enforcement programs like R.I.D.E. Impaired driving is still the leading criminal offence causing deaths in Canada.
This initiative has been made possible, in part, as a result of grant funding from the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services as part of the Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (R.I.D.E) program.
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