Quebec Coroner Urges Stricter DUI Penalties Consistent with National Standards

A Quebec coroner states that if the province had stricter penalties for drunk driving like the rest of the country, a driver involved in a fatal accident with a motorcyclist in 2020 would not have been on the road at that time.

Coroner Geneviève Thériault reveals that the man driving had been stopped by Quebec provincial police for reckless driving less than an hour before the deadly collision on June 4, 2020.

Although his blood alcohol level was between 50 and 99 milligrams per 100 milliliters of blood as per a breathalyzer test, it couldn’t confirm if he exceeded the Criminal Code’s legal limit of 80 mg per 100 ml of blood.

The provincial police explain that results in the grey area between 50 and 99 require additional signs of impairment for an arrest, which were lacking in this case.

Upon being stopped in Grenville, Que., the police advised him that he could potentially be over the legal limit and suggested calling a friend or waiting before driving again.

“Since the test result did not confirm that the legal limit for driving a motor vehicle, set at less than 80 mg/100 ml, was exceeded, the patrol officers informed the driver that he could be over the legal limit and that if he was involved in an accident he could be charged with impaired driving,” Thériault wrote.

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“The driver replied that he would pull over before continuing on his way.”

Less than an hour later, the crash happened on a provincial highway around 50 kilometers from the initial stop, resulting in the death of 64-year-old Bernard D’Aragon, an experienced motorcyclist.

Both vehicles were traveling at about 90 kilometers per hour, leading to the driver being convicted of dangerous driving causing death.

Quebec remains the only province not to have a legal alcohol limit of 50 mg per 100 ml of blood or less—where drivers can face penalties or lose their licenses. In Saskatchewan, the limit is 40 mg per 100 ml of blood.

“Quebec is now isolated on the issue of administrative sanctions, as it appears that all provinces and territories in Canada have adopted such sanctions to reduce the number of deaths and accidents related to impaired driving,” Thériault stated.

“If administrative sanctions comparable to those existing elsewhere in the country had been in effect in Quebec in 2020, the police could have immediately suspended the driver’s license and seized the vehicle during the stop, which would have prevented the accident.”

One of the coroner’s recommendations is for the province’s automobile insurance board and the Transport Department to amend the Highway Safety Code to impose administrative penalties on drivers with a blood alcohol concentration of 50 mg per 100 ml or higher.

This isn’t the first time Thériault has suggested Quebec lower its limit, with other coroners also making similar recommendations in 2023. Despite this, the Coalition Avenir Québec government has refused to make any changes.

“It is essential to act early to protect human life, and I believe we must act without further delay,” she emphasized.