Four people entered guilty pleas for impaired driving-related charges on Monday in Estevan Provincial Court.
One of them was a food vendor who had been drinking at the 2017 Beach Bash at Woodlawn Regional Park, who was told to leave. So he did. And when he did, he was promptly pulled over by police and charged with impaired driving.
On Monday, Russell Butler was convicted of operating a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol level in excess of .08.
During the park’s Beach Bash last year, there was a complaint to police on patrol that a person at a concession had been drinking.
Defence attorney Joelle Graham said that Butler was a self-employed mobile food vendor who also works in construction. He was told he needed to take his cart and leave. He did, and he left as far as he needed to, according to Graham.
“He wasn’t intent on driving very far,” she said.
However, Crown prosecutor Ali Shah noted he went onto a public road, driving outside the campgrounds, and a traffic stop was conducted. There he failed the roadside screening device and eventually blew two samples of .130, in excess of the legal limit of .08.
Butler had two prior convictions, but the last one was in 1997.
The Crown and defence entered a joint submission which called for a $1,500 fine and a $450 victim impact surcharge. He would also see a 12-month driving prohibition.
Judge Lane Wiegers agreed with the joint submission, noting that Butler’s record was quite old and not aggravating. With that, he handed down the sentence requested.
Since Butler found that amount will be difficult to pay, Wiegers gave him six months to come up with it.
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Robyn Maryanne Dwernychuk was caught driving on May 17 while impaired. She was driving on Fourth Street and made a left-turn onto Kensington Avenue. Police observed she had been driving extremely slow and then was driving on the shoulder.
Her overcorrections while driving were viewed as a giveaway, and she was pulled over. In addition to the smell of beverage alcohol, police noted two open Bud Light beers in her cupholders.
Dwernychuk failed the roadside screening device and then blew two samples that indicated a blood alcohol level of .18, in excess of .08, the legal limit.
Shah noted she had a prior 2004 impaired driving conviction. He asked for a “high fine.”
Dwernychuk, representing herself, pleaded guilty, and asked for a lower fine. When Wiegers asked her about her circumstances, she replied, “I have three kids.”
Her inability to drive since then has meant she has been unable to work all of her shifts. Additionally, her husband had been laid off for four months. “We’ve been struggling,” she said.
“I regret what I did. I know it doesn’t change anything.”
The judge recognized her financial stress, but pointed out the fine should reflect the level of impairment.
He acknowledged her prior conviction was 14 years old, and gave her credit for pleading guilty at the earliest opportunity. With that, he lowered the find in $1,500, plus a $450 victim impact surcharge, totalling $1,950. She was given six months to pay, but can apply for an extension if necessary.
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Calvin E. Veroba was caught driving while impaired on June 12.
An anonymous call to police said he had left a trucking business on the east side of Estevan, driving while impaired. Police pulled him over and subsequent breathalyzer tests resulted in two .100 samples, just over the .08 legal limit.
Veroba, representing himself, offered no dispute to the Crown’s statements. “I made a dumb mistake,” he said.
As he had no prior convictions, the Crown prosecutor called for the mandatory minimum sentence. Judge Wiegers concurred, and handed Veroba a $1,000 fine, a $300 victim impact surcharge and 12-month driving prohibition. Veroba said he would pay the fine right away.
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Justin Paul Waldner pleaded guilty to driving with his blood alcohol level in excess of .08.
Someone phoned police on May 20 and reported he had left a local drinking establishment. He was pulled over at 13th Avenue and King Street.
The breathalyzer samples he blew were both .100, just over the legal limit. As such, the Crown prosecutor called for a mandatory minimum sentence.
Waldner, representing himself, said, “I have no justification. I’m thankful something worse didn’t happen.”
He, too, was given a $1,000 fine, a $300 victim impact surcharge, and a 12-month driving prohibition. Waldner will have three months to pay.
