Sitting in your vehicle while high can still land you an impaired driving charge.
Ivan Babchouk, 26, pleaded guilty in Estevan Provincial Court on Feb. 10 to operating a motor vehicle, whether it is in motion or not, while the ability to operate the vehicle is impaired by alcohol or a drug. He was charged under the old Section 253(1)a of the Criminal Code, which has since been updated.
On May 18, 2019, at 5 p.m. police found Babchouk sitting in a pickup parked near a gas station in Midale. The gas station was closed at the time.
He had been injecting crystal methamphetamine earlier that day, according to Crown prosecutor Mitch Crumley. He was fidgeting or “tweaking,” Crumley said. Police found a meth pipe and used syringe in Babchouk’s underwear.
There was some discussion as to how much meth he had ingested, as defence attorney Suzan Wurtz expressed the amount indicated by the Crown would have killed him. However, as Crumley noted the actual amount was immaterial, they carried on.
Babchouk was born in Ukraine and immigrated to Canada with his parents when he was four. He became a Canadian citizen at age nine. He had worked previously in the oilfield.
She added Babchouk had been diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2016. He had started using cannabis when he was 16, and then meth. He had undergone detox treatment in Moose Jaw and North Battleford.
Appearing by phone, Babchouk told Judge Michelle Brass, “I’m really sorry about my actions. I was acting foolishly. It won’t happen again.”
The Crown and defence made a joint submission for the sentence, which Brass imposed. Babchouk was given a $1,000 fine and a one-year driving prohibition. He has 10 months to pay.
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Lucas Morgan Peterson pleaded guilty on Feb. 10 to operating a conveyance while the person’s ability to operate it is impaired to any degree by alcohol or a drug or by a combination of alcohol and a drug.
This came from an incident on Dec. 4, 2019, at the Port of Carievale. Peterson was returning from the United States when Canada Border Services Agency guards detected alcohol. He failed a breath test and was subsequently re-arrested by Carnduff RCMP.
Peterson blew .160 and .150, in excess of the legal limit of .08.
He had no prior criminal record, according to Crumley.
Defence attorney Nicholas Robinson, appearing by phone, called it “an aberration,” and noted that Peterson routinely drives to the U.S.
The two lawyers made a joint submission for sentencing, with an $1,100 fine and one-year driving prohibition. Judge Brass gave him four months to pay.
