Calgary Criminal Driving Offences Lawyer

Yes. Dangerous operation of a conveyance is an offence under s. 320.13 of the Criminal Code, not a traffic ticket. It is prosecuted in criminal court, it cannot be resolved by paying a fine, and a conviction produces a criminal record. It is a hybrid offence: where the Crown proceeds by indictment the maximum is ten years, and on summary conviction it is two years less a day.

Careless driving is a provincial ticket; dangerous driving is a crime. Careless driving falls under s. 115(2)(b) of Alberta's Traffic Safety Act and requires only that you drove without due care and attention. Dangerous driving requires the Crown to prove a marked departure from the standard of a reasonably prudent driver, a materially higher threshold set by the Supreme Court of Canada in R v Beatty and R v Roy. A careless conviction means a fine and six demerit points. A dangerous driving conviction means a criminal record and exposure to jail.

Careless driving carries a specified penalty fine, six demerit points and a mandatory court appearance, and a judge can impose a higher fine on a conviction after trial. Six demerits is the heaviest penalty available for a non-criminal moving violation in Alberta, and most insurers treat it as a major rating event.

No. For dangerous driving, failing to stop after an accident, flight from a peace officer and operation while prohibited, a driving prohibition is discretionary under s. 320.24(4). The court may impose one, but is not required to. Mandatory prohibitions apply to impaired driving and refusal charges, which are different offences and are dealt with on our DUI and Immediate Roadside Sanctions page. Prohibitions are still imposed routinely in these cases, which is why what is put before the sentencing judge matters.

Sometimes. In appropriate cases a Crown prosecutor will agree to resolve a dangerous driving charge by way of a plea to a Traffic Safety Act offence such as careless driving, which avoids a criminal record. Whether that is available depends on the strength of the evidence, the seriousness of the driving alleged, whether anyone was injured, and your driving record. It is not something anyone can promise in advance, but it is worth pursuing from the outset because the argument is strongest before positions harden.

It depends on what you collided with and what you knew. Section 320.16 of the Criminal Code applies where your vehicle was involved in an accident with a person or another vehicle and you failed, without reasonable excuse, to stop, give your name and address, and offer assistance where someone was injured or appeared to need it. The Crown must prove you knew, or were reckless as to whether, an accident had occurred. The offence carries a maximum of ten years, rising to fourteen years where bodily harm resulted and life imprisonment where someone died.

Usually not under the Criminal Code. Section 320.16 is engaged by an accident with a person or another conveyance. Striking a fence, a sign, a building or similar property and leaving is generally dealt with under Alberta's Traffic Safety Act instead. A parked car is another conveyance, so that situation does fall within the criminal provision. Because the consequences are so different, it is worth confirming which one you are actually facing before you respond to anything.

That goes to an element of the offence, and it is one of the stronger defences available. The Crown must prove you knew, or were reckless as to whether, your vehicle had been involved in an accident. Drivers who did not register a low-speed impact, or who believed they had struck a curb or road debris, are not automatically guilty. The evidentiary presumption that used to assist the Crown on this charge was repealed when the current conveyance provisions came into force in December 2018.

That is often the central issue on a flight charge. Section 320.17 makes it an offence to fail, without reasonable excuse, to stop as soon as is reasonable in the circumstances while being pursued by a peace officer. There is no requirement that the officer used a siren. Unmarked vehicles, heavy traffic, poor visibility and a short distance between the officer activating emergency equipment and your stop can all support the position that you pulled over at the first safe opportunity rather than fled. The offence carries a maximum of ten years on indictment.

One is criminal, the other usually is not. Section 320.18 of the Criminal Code covers driving in breach of a court-ordered prohibition, and also driving in breach of a provincial licence restriction that was imposed because of a criminal conviction or discharge. Driving while suspended for unpaid fines or accumulated demerits is a provincial matter instead. The criminal offence carries a maximum of ten years on indictment with no mandatory minimum, and there is a statutory exception for drivers registered in and complying with a provincial ignition interlock program.

Criminal driving charges in Calgary start in the Alberta Court of Justice at the Calgary Courts Centre, 601 5 Street SW. Where the Crown proceeds by indictment you may have the right to elect trial in the Court of King's Bench, with or without a jury. That election is made early, it is difficult to reverse, and it changes how the case runs, which is a good reason to get advice before your first appearance rather than after it.

It is possible, though it is not the usual outcome where no one was hurt and you have no record. There is no mandatory minimum for dangerous driving on its own, for failing to stop where no injury resulted, for flight, or for operation while prohibited, meaning fines, probation and discharges are all available. Where dangerous driving caused bodily harm or death, the Criminal Code sets a mandatory minimum fine of $1,000 on a first offence, and custodial sentences are common. Operation while prohibited is the outlier among the simpler charges: because it is treated as defiance of a court order, the Crown frequently seeks jail even on a first offence.