Spate of impaired driving arrests concerning for Grey Bruce OPP

Article content

Grey Bruce OPP are expressing concern after they charged a total of 10 drivers in 11 days with impaired-related offences, including three arrests in one day.

Article content

A news release was issued on Tuesday by police detailing the incidents between May 1 and May 11 involving motorists who had been charged with impaired driving. The incidents occurred in numerous communities across the two counties, including Georgian Bluffs, Southgate, Meaford, Saugeen First Nation, and South Bruce Peninsula. Drivers charged ranged in age from 17 to 66.

Police said in the news release that impaired driving puts everyone at risk and it is something Grey Bruce OPP take very seriously. Those caught impaired driving will not only face criminal charges, but also an automatic 30-day licence suspension and seven-day vehicle impoundment.

“Enforcing laws surrounding criminal driving offences such as impaired driving has always been a part of our duties – and generally, we do see impaired driving on roadways in our area, however 10 drivers in 11 days is concerning,” Grey Bruce OPP media relations officer Const. Nick Wilson said via e-mail.

Article content

Article content

“It’s also concerning that in one particular day we made three arrests (May 4) in Grey Bruce alone where drivers were charged with impaired related offences.”

The first in the stretch of incidents was on May 1 just after 4 p.m. when police responded to a traffic complaint on Hwy. 21 in Georgian Bluffs. A vehicle was located and the driver was placed under arrest. A 52-year-old Chatsworth man was charged with impaired driving and driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus.

On May 4, at 8:30 p.m. officers stopped a vehicle on Hwy. 6 in Georgian Bluffs for a Highway Traffic Act infraction, and the driver, a 54-year-old St Catharines woman, was placed under arrest for impaired-related offences. She was charged with impaired driving, driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus and possession of a schedule 1 substance.

Article content

Just before 10 p.m. that same day, police responded to a report of a vehicle in the ditch on Ida Street in Dundalk. The driver displayed signs of impairment and was arrested. A 29-year-old Shelburne man was charged with impaired driving, failing to report an accident and refusing to comply with a demand.

At about the same time in Meaford, different officers were dispatched to a collision on Tom Thomson Lane, where they discovered a vehicle had failed to remain at the scene. They were located a short time later, and a 25-year-old Owen Sound resident was charged with impaired driving and driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus.

Just after 3 a.m. on May 6, officers conducted a traffic stop on Hwy. 6 in Saugeen First Nation for a Highway Traffic Act infraction. The 17-year-old driver from Neyaashiinigmiing First Nation was displaying signs of impairment, was placed under arrest and was charged with impaired driving, driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus and being a novice driver with a blood-alcohol level above zero.

Article content

Later that morning, before 9 a.m., officers conducting a RIDE program on Bruce Rd. 14 in South Bruce Peninsula noticed signs of impairment on a driver who entered the program. A 24-year-old South Bruce Peninsula man was arrested and charged with impaired driving, driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus and driving with open liquor.

The next day just after midnight a RIDE check was being conducted on Princess Street in Shallow Lake. The driver of a vehicle showed signs of impairment and a 46-year-old South Bruce Peninsula man was arrested and charged with impaired driving and driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus.

On May 9, at 2:20 p.m., officers responded to a report of an erratic driver on Hwy. 6 in Georgian Bluffs. The driver was located in the parking lot of a business and was displaying signs of impairment. A 63-year-old Sarnia resident was charged with impaired driving and driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus.

Article content

Later that afternoon, before 5 p.m., officers responded to a traffic complaint on Hwy. 10 in Southgate. The vehicle was located and stopped and the driver showed signs of impairment. A 40-year-old Southgate man was charged with impaired driving, driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus, failing to display two plates, failing to surrender a permit, failure to surrender an insurance card and driving with liquor readily available.

On May 11, just before 8 p.m., a vehicle was stopped for a Highway Traffic Act offence on Hwy. 6 in South Bruce Peninsula. While speaking with the driver officers detected signs of impairment. The 66-year-old driver from Alberta was charged with impaired driving, driving with a blood alcohol concentration of 80 plus, speeding, driving with a handheld communication device, driving with cannabis readily available, and driving with open liquor.

All the involved drivers were released and are scheduled to appear in Ontario Court of Justice in Owen Sound, except for the youth arrested on May 6, who is scheduled to appear in court in Walkerton.