In the News

Let's talk about random breathalyzers
Edmonton Journal
March 13, 2010

Any reasonable measures to curb the scourge of drunk-driving fatalities should be welcomed by all Canadians of goodwill. Canada's current federal legislation regarding impaired driving offences is over 40 years old, and it goes without saying that attitudes, statistics and the science associated with the crime have changed profoundly over that time and should be revisited.

Frankly, society has come to recognize that something very close to a zero-tolerance threshold is the best and most appropriate way to stem the needless, preventable tragedy. Public education programs are valuable and have made a useful contribution. But by now, everyone understands that impaired driving -- usually rooted in alcohol -- can only be stopped by sterner measures.

As of 2009 in Alberta, for all the publicity afforded gang-related murders, family killings and fallen police officers, the numbers of homicides (110) virtually mirrors those who lost their lives (107) in impaired driving incidents. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) estimates that of the 3,122 individuals killed in 2006 motor vehicle crashes in the nation, some 1,278 involved impaired driving -- and those are likely conservative readings.

Those numbers don't include an estimated 164 water-related deaths linked to alcohol use. And the overall toll gets much worse when injuries, property damage, and costs of impaired driving accidents are factored in.

Australia, New Zealand and 22 European nations have imposed random testing programs that seem to be improving outcomes. According to the Canada's Justice Department, random breathalyzer checks in New Zealand have reduced fatal crashes by as much as 35 per cent in some regions and saved Kiwi taxpayers more than $1 billion since 1997.

In an unusual move, federal justice officials in Ottawa have posted a discussion paper on the topic, inviting Canadians of all walks to provide feedback on random testing over the next six weeks. The justice department, in consultation with provincial governments and various interest groups, says it is taking a serious look at a "comprehensive set of reforms" to combat impaired driving, of which random tests could be a component.

Critics of the status quo contend that current law-enforcement methods dictating that breathalyzer tests can only be ordered when officers have reason to suspect a driver is impaired are ineffective. Major checkstops tend to be staged during major holidays, and are usually well-publicized. Even at such moments, interest groups such as MADD claim many offenders slip though, especially experienced drinkers. As a result, it is felt that only a small percentage of impaired drivers are ever caught in the web.

On the other hand, Canada is a country where individual liberty has long been prized and defended over collectivist ideals, however well-intentioned. Across-the-board random testing could well spur on unfair profiling campaigns by police, and it remains to be seen whether such methods would be acceptable under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The fact that the Canadian Bar Association, among other legal groups, have yet to fashion a position on random testing is instructive.

The cynical among us might also question if the initiative might also have something to do with the Harper Conservatives' vaunted law-and-order preoccupation, a stance clearly designed with electoral pay dirt in mind.

That said, surely a public discussion on the subject is warranted, with views on all sides publicly aired before any legislation is proposed.

It is certainly true that the timing of publicizing a discussion paper -- rare by any stretch -- might well come into question given the recent seemingly light sentence handed down to Rahim Jaffer. (On that score, the Ontario attorney general owes the public a candid explanation to preserve the dignity of Canadian jurisprudence, and time is wasting).

But whether politically motivated or not, a full, open and thoughtful national conversation on finding new approaches to cutting the carnage owing to drunk driving should be engaged.