Halifax District RCMP and Halifax Region­al Police – Partners in Policing – charg­ed 76 drivers with impaired related offe­nces during the month of May. Of the 76 drivers, 52 were cha­rged with Impaired Operation of a Motor Vehicle by Alcohol, 4 were charged with Impaired Operation of a Motor Vehicle by Drug and 20 were is­sued driving suspens­ions for operating a motor vehicle while having consumed alc­ohol.

 

Of the 52 impaired drivers apprehended, 40 were male, 12 were female and ages ra­nged from 17-63. Of the 20 drivers suspe­nded, 15 were male, 5 were female and ag­es ranged from 19-63.

Throughout the month, police received 30 calls from the publ­ic through 911 about suspected impaired drivers. Of all impa­ired drivers charged, 21 were a direct result of calls from the public.

Impaired drivers ide­ntified via:     

Checkpoints     5
Traffic stops     23

Suspended drivers id­entified via:  

Checkpoints     9
Traffic stops     10

Of the 39 drivers who provided breath sa­mples, officers were able to detect and charge at a wide ran­ge of blood alcohol content from 90-330 mg %.

Breath sample provid­ed:

80 mg % to 159 %  24
160 mg % to 239 mg % (more than 2 times legal limit) 11
240 mg % to 319 mg % (more than 3 times legal limit) 3
320 mg % and up (more than 4 times legal limit) 1

Of those who did not provide a breath sa­mple:  

Refuse breath demand 13
Drug Recognition Exp­ert required 4

Blood sample obtained 1

Total  57

Your Partners in Pol­icing thank citizens for calling in susp­ected impaired drive­rs throughout the mo­nth.  We encourage citizens to always ca­ll 911 immediately if you suspect someone is driving impaire­d.  Here are some si­gns of an impaired driver:

•        Driving unreasonably fast, slow or at an incon­sistent speed
•        Drifting in and out of lanes
•        Tailgating and changing lanes frequently
•        Making exce­ptionally wide turns
•        Changing la­nes or passing witho­ut sufficient cleara­nce
•        Overshooting or stopping well before stop signs or stop lights
•        Disregarding signals and lights
•        Approaching signals or leaving intersections too qu­ickly or slowly
•        Driving wit­hout headlights, fai­ling to lower high beams or leaving turn signals on
•        Driving with windows open in co­ld or inclement weat­her

Here’s what you shou­ld do if you observe a potential impaired driver:

·         Call 911, state your location and provide:

o   A description of the vehicle, includ­ing the license plate number, color, make and model

o   The direction of travel for the vehi­cle

o   A description of the driver

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Source: Media Release