95-Year-Old Ontario Man Charged With Driving Scooter While Impaired

A file photo of an Ontario Provincial Police logo. Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press

A 95-year-old Northern Ontario man has been charged with impaired driving after police were called to a traffic hazard last week.

Nipissing West Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officers responded to a call of a scooter blocking the roadway on Pine Street in West Nipissing Aug. 30 at approximately 1 a.m.

“Police located a low-speed mobile scooter stationary in the middle of the road,” police said in a press release. “The operator was arrested for impaired driving and then transported to the OPP detachment for further testing.”

West Nipissing resident Francis Landry has been charged with operation while impaired by alcohol in connection with the incident.

Landry was released and is scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice on Oct. 3 in North Bay. He was also issued a 90-day driver’s licence suspension.

“The OPP would like to remind the public that if you see a possible impaired driver on our roadways, waterways, or trails … dial 911 as impaired driving never ends well,” police said.

“Please plan a way to get home safely.”

Impaired Driving in Ontario

Ontario announced plans this spring to crack down on impaired driving amid a rising number of incidents. The legislation includes a lifetime licence suspension for people convicted of impaired driving causing death and mandatory installation of an ignition interlock device in the vehicle of anyone found guilty of impaired driving.

If passed, the law would also require mandatory remedial education and treatment for first- and second-time alcohol- and drug-related offences, according to a government press release. Immediate roadside licence suspensions for first and second-time alcohol and drug-related offences would also be increased under the proposed legislation and police authority to stop vehicles to administer sobriety tests for drivers on or off the highway would be reinforced.

Drivers under the influence of drugs would face the same consequences as drivers affected by alcohol.

Government statistics show one in three roadway fatalities in Ontario involve impaired driving, either from alcohol or drugs. And while alcohol-related incidents continue to be an issue, the percentage of drivers killed while under the influence of cannabis has more than doubled between 2012 and 2020.

A 2022 roadside survey compiled by the province found one in five drivers tested positive for drugs, alcohol, or both.

Canadian drivers can face impaired charges if they have a blood-alcohol concentration of 80 milligrams or more of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood.

Cannabis impairment comes in two levels depending upon the amount of THC, the primary psychoactive component of cannabis, in the bloodstream. It is a serious offence to have five nanograms of THC or more per millilitre of blood, the website says. It is a less serious offence to have between two and five nanograms of THC per millilitre of blood.

Those who have used both alcohol and cannabis are considered impaired when 50 milligrams or more of alcohol are found in 100 millilitres of blood combined with 2.5 nanograms or more of THC per millilitre of blood.