NEWS RELEASE
ONTARIO PROCINCIAL POLICE
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LITTLE CURRENT - The Manitoulin Detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) arrested three motorists for impaired driving between March 1 and 4, 2023. Three more drivers were issued warn range licence suspensions during the same period.
On March 1, 2023, at approximately 5:50 p.m., Manitoulin OPP responded to a traffic complaint of a pickup truck hitting snowbanks and driving on the wrong side of Highway 542 in Carnarvon Township. Officers located the driver and determined they had been consuming alcoholic beverages. They were arrested and returned to detachment for further tests.
Andre Patrick Leblanc, 55 years old from Mindemoya, was charged with:
• Operation while impaired - alcohol and drugs
• Operation while impaired - blood alcohol concentration (80 plus)
They are scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Gore Bay on April 19, 2023.
On March 2, 2023, at approximately 6:15 p.m., Manitoulin OPP responded to a report of a driver asleep at the wheel of a Jeep at a Centre Street business in Espanola. Officers located the driver after they left the scene and determined they had been consuming drugs. They were arrested and returned to detachment for further tests.
Beau James Davidson, 28 years old from Espanola, was charged with operation while impaired - alcohol and drugs. They are scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Espanola on April 17, 2023.
On March 4, 2023, at approximately 2:50 a.m., Manitoulin OPP conducted a traffic stop on Highway 542. It was determined the driver had been consuming alcoholic beverages and they were arrested and returned to detachment for further tests.
A young person, 17-year-old from Nairn Centre, has been charged with:
• Operation while impaired - alcohol and drugs
• Operation while impaired - blood alcohol concentration (80 plus)
They are scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Gore Bay in April 2023.
All three drivers had their vehicles impounded and their licences suspended for 90 days.
In three separate investigations during the same four-day period, Manitoulin OPP issued the breath demand for an approved screening device (ASD) which resulted in a driver registering an "Alert". Two of the drivers had their licences suspended for three days. The third driver had their licence suspended for seven days.
If a driver registers a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) from .05 to .08 (known as the "warn range"), the driver will receive an immediate driver's licence suspension:
• First occurrence, a driver will be suspended for three days.
• Second occurrence in a five-year period, the driver will be immediately suspended for seven days and undergo a remedial alcohol-education program.
• Third or subsequent time in a five-year period, the driver will be immediately suspended for 30 days, and the driver must undergo a remedial alcohol-treatment program and have an ignition interlock condition placed on the driver's licence for six months.
Drivers are reminded that no amount of alcohol or drugs in your system is safe when driving. If you plan on drinking or consuming drugs, plan not to drive. Instead, arrange for a designated driver or take a taxi.
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