Appeal Court strikes down part of Alberta’s impaired driving legislation
EDMONTON — Alberta’s highest court has struck down a section of the province’s Traffic Safety Act that allows authorities to suspend the licences of suspected drunk drivers until their cases are resolved in court.
The Alberta Court of Appeal says taking away the licences of drivers who haven’t been found guilty violates their charter rights.
The court said in a split ruling released Thursday that the law as it stands imposes sanctions as soon as a criminal charge is laid “without regard to the presumption of innocence.”
Lawyer Nate Whitling had argued in an appeal filed by four individuals that a driver waiting to be tried on impaired driving charges has to do without a licence for many months because of a backlog in the courts.