Two people appearing before Estevan Provincial Court on Monday, both with a drunk driving convictions in the distant past, received similar sentences close to the mandatory minimums after entering guilty pleas.
David Soderholm was leaving a licensed establishment on King Street on April 23 at 12:30 a.m. He turned west onto King Street, then south on Petterson Drive, when he was pulled over by the Estevan Police Service. He admitted to having a couple of drinks.
Soderholm failed the roadside screening device and then subsequently blew .110 and .090, in excess of the .08 legal limit for intoxication.
Soderholm, 45, had a .08 conviction in 2001, but nothing since then. His lawyer, Joelle Graham, indicated he was single with no dependents, and was laid off as a truck driver. He had underestimated how long it would take for the alcohol to clear his system, and told her, “If I had waited another hour…”
Judge Lane Wiegers agreed with the joint submission and told Soderholm, “You’ll have to do better.” He sentenced Soderholm to a $1,200 fine and $360 victim impact surcharge, and gave him six months to pay. He also received a 12-month driving prohibition.
That was the same sentence Wiegers handed down moments earlier to Stacy Gillies. She had been noted by Estevan Police on April 21 of driving suspiciously, pulling back into the same parking lot she had just left. Gillies initially denied she was drinking, but police smelled alcohol on her and Gillies failed the roadside screening device.
She eventually blew .100 and .90, just over the legal limit.
Gillies had a prior impaired driving conviction from 16 years prior. The Crown prosecutor recommended a minimum sentence.
Wiegers questioned Gillies, who was representing herself, and found she was not working at present, and a single mom. She had been working as a waitress.
“Is this bad judgement on your part?” the judge asked,
“Oh, yes,” Gillies replied.
“This crime is a real scourge in our community,” Wiegers said. He handed her the same sentence – a $1,200 fine, $360 victim surcharge, and a 12-month driving prohibition. Gillies asked for three months to pay.
