Know the law: Stop and think before you drink

We don’t know who’ll win Cup Match but one thing is for sure — a LOT of booze will be consumed over the next few days. But who will drink wisely and who will risk lives and liberty by drinking and driving?

We break down the law with the help of  Shade Subair, a Director and Partner of Mussenden Subair Barristers and Attorneys. I also give me two cents based on years of experience covering Magistrates’ Court daily.

If I go out drinking at night and drive my car early the next morning, can I be charged with drink-driving? 

Shade Subair: Alcohol remains in the human system for varying periods (often several hours) after consumption. A person who unlawfully operates a vehicle while there is a continued presence or excess of 80 mgs of alcohol in a 100 milliliter sample of their blood offends the law, whether they are no longer impaired or not.

Mikaela Ian Pearman: I know of someone who finished partying/drinking at about 3am and drove a car at 9am that morning. She got into a single vehicle accident and was arrested for impaired driving. She was ultimately convicted and given a one-year ban.

What is the difference between impaired driving and driving with more alcohol than the legal limit? Is one worse than the other?

SS: Impaired driving refers to the impact of intoxication on the driver. A person who drives with an excess of 80mg of alcohol in 100 milliliters of their blood commits the offence whether or not that excess quantity caused him/her to be intoxicated. Generally, the same penalty is imposed on each of these two offences. However, the penalty may also vary depending on the particular facts of the case.

MIP: I’ve always understood it to be admitting driving while impaired is admitting you drove while drunk. Admitting had more than 80 milliliters of alcohol in your system is essentially admitting you had a drink or two and drove, not that you drove while drunk.

If I admit to impaired driving, rather then driving with more alcohol than the legal limit (or refusing to take a breathalyzer or being in care and control of a vehicle while impaired), will this affect my insurance? 

SS: The terms of vehicular insurance are principally a contractual matter between the insurance companies and their clients. However, a conviction for any one of these offences is very likely to impact on one’s insurance premium and coverage in any event.

MIP: I’m learning, through my experience in court and speaking to lawyers, that defendants are encouraged to plead not guilty to impaired driving because they are admitting they drove drunk. It’s better, it seems, to admit you drove with more than 80 milliliters of alcohol in your system or refused a breathalyser test.

A friend was drunk the other night and had to wheel his bike down the road. Is this legal?

SS: Being in care and control of a vehicle while impaired by alcohol or a drug is an offence. This is not confined to driving or riding the vehicle. 

MIP: A few weeks ago, a man was in court for this very offence. He was seen by police walking his bike from one house to another. Police suspected he was impaired and arrested and charged him.

If I’m sitting in my car with the engine off after a night of drinking, can I be arrested for impaired driving?

SS: Being in care and control of a vehicle while impaired by alcohol or a drug is an offence. This applies where the accused person is sitting in the driver’s seat of the vehicle, even when the vehicle is stationary. The law states that where it is proved that the accused occupied the driver’s seat, he/she shall be deemed to have had care or control of the vehicle unless it is established by a preponderance of evidence that he/she did not intend to set the vehicle in motion.

MIP: This has happened many times in court. I have seen countless defendants claim “I wasn’t driving, I was just sleeping/sitting in the seat”. If the keys are in the ignition, it’s an offence. In a case in April, a defendant said was he was sitting in the driver’s seat in case the vehicle had to be moved while his sister, who was driving, ran an errand. He was convicted, but was allowed to keep his heavy truck licence for work. 

Mussenden Subair Limited is located at Jardine House, 33-35 Reid Street. Email: [email protected]. Website: www.mussendensubair.com. Tel: 239-4140.

Viewpoint: Are our drink-driving laws too strict — or too lax?

Drink-driving — it seems so ubiquitous it’s almost a national pastime. Whereas in many other countries the practice carries a harsh stigma, in Bermuda it’s almost a cultural norm, even though it can cost people their lives, limbs and liberty. Reporter Mikaela Ian Pearman asked islanders about the law and its enforcement.

receptionist

‘The laws are too lax. I know a lot of people who drink and drive. I think they need to crack down on it.’

Lorraine Lipsehututz, 39

finance

‘The laws are too lax. It’s too common in the culture here. I think tightening up the laws would send a message that it’s not acceptable.’

Brad Rowse, 52

banking

‘The laws are too lax. And the laws are not efficient enough.’

Sweyne Trott, 32

courier

‘If you want to drink and drive reckless, you should be taken off the road.’

Adrian Minx, 35

electrician

‘I don’t think they’re too strict. If you get caught, you get taken off the roads.’’

Stephen Donnelly, 32

sales consultant

‘The laws are too lax. There’s too much drink driving on the roads.
You hear the stories all the time and you see people speeding all the time. It [the law] doesn’t seem to be working.’