San Diego DUI attorney news

Suspected Canadian DUI / drunk drivers still somehow have the right to refuse giving proof that could be used to convict or clear them.

That's because they can still refuse to blow into a breathalyser or give a blood sample for alcohol testing. And these scofflaws seem to believe the full penalty for that justice-obstructing crime, which actually matches that available for impaired driving, will never really be applied.

In fact, the first four drivers caught for suspected drunk driving at holiday checkstops this year refused to blow in to the device used to test their intoxication.

And it appears the public shame of being named by police for an alleged drunk driving charge didn't curb the trend.

Even drivers suspected of killing people while impaired behind the wheel lately seem prone to keep their breath to themselves.

On Nov. 7, Dennis Joseph McKay, 40, was charged with criminal negligence causing death, impaired driving causing death, failure to provide a blood sample and driving while suspended, after the pickup truck he was driving crashed into a tree and fence at Keewatin Street and Pacific Avenue, killing a 36-year-old passenger.

And on Oct. 30, a 28-year-old man allegedly broadsided a vehicle at Cavalier Drive and Hamilton Avenue, killing 63-year-old Therese Hadley. He also refused a breathalyser.

Sadly, each holiday season a baffling number of people are still dumb and reckless enough to steer their way home after drinking. It appears this season is opening as criminals start a trend of betting on a legal loophole.

Even Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) backed off from its previous lobby to force drivers involved in crashes that injure or kill someone to give a blood sample to police. The fear is this law wouldn't hold up against a constitutional challenge.

Again, it appears the culprits' rights trump those of their potential, or too often actual, victims.

Tougher penalties

Instead, MADD added its support to the federal Conservative government's lobby for tougher drunk driving penalties. Part of Bill C-2, the much-debated federal Tackling Violent Crime Act, could be enough to make drunk drivers hesitate about refusing to give breath or blood samples.

The act includes a bill that could pair the crime with a maximum penalty of life in prison if the driver was involved in a crash that resulted in a death. This would apply after a drug recognition expert identifies the person as impaired.

According to MADD Canada, drunk drivers kill four Canadians every day and injure 190 more, especially during the holidays.

MADD is pushing citizens to write their members of parliament or pick up a form letter from its agency to push for Bill C-2s success.

They also urge you to report drunk drivers through their "Campaign 911," by calling police when you spot a driver who may have drank too much.

Finally, the group wants random breath samples taken at checkstops, which they believe could reduce drunk driving deaths.

Easily ignored

When refusing a breathalyser is a crime too easily ignored, we may be left to doubt this is really enough.

Winnipeggers joined in anger after a judge upheld a plea bargain that let a former Winnipeg cop serve a two-year conditional sentence for fatally crashing his car into that of Winnipeg mom Crystal Taman's in February 2005.

Derek Harvey-Zenk, the driver, also refused to blow into a breathalyser.

The charge of impaired driving causing death was dropped in his case, which ended when his plea bargain sentence for impaired driving causing death was upheld on Oct. 29.

But public pressure in this case shows backlash can, at the very least, lead to answers.

Manitoba Justice Minister Dave Chomiak promised Wednesday that a public inquiry into the Harvey-Zenk case will be "as extensive an inquiry as we have ever had in Manitoba."

Perhaps further public outrage can help stimulate laws to break the string of drivers dodging their responsibility at crash scenes.

A mandatory minimum sentence for refusing a breathalyser could also go a long way, since the current punishment just isn't being applied enough to persuade drivers to give police the evidence they need.

As long as there are drivers ignorant and careless enough to drive drunk, some folks (like MADD) will push to close every loophole they can use to get away with it.