Charged With Impaired Driving in Ontario? What Happens Next — and How to Protect Yourself

The first is administrative and provincial. Under Ontario's licensing rules, a driver who registers a “fail” on roadside testing, or who is charged criminally, can face an immediate 90-day Administrative Driver's Licence Suspension and a 7-day vehicle impoundment — at the roadside, before any court has weighed in. These penalties are not a finding of guilt; they flow automatically from the charge.

The second is the criminal case itself, prosecuted by the Crown. This is the process that determines whether you are convicted, and it is where a defence is fought. The two move on completely different timelines, which is why people are often surprised to lose their licence long before their first real court date.

Since the December 2018 changes to the Criminal Code (Bill C-46), police in Canada have the power of mandatory alcohol screening. If an officer has an approved screening device on hand and you have been lawfully stopped, they can demand a roadside breath sample without first needing a specific suspicion that you have been drinking.

A “fail” on the roadside screening device typically leads to an arrest and a demand that you provide further samples on an approved instrument back at the station. Those station readings — not the roadside screen — are what the Crown relies on to prove an “over 80” charge.

From the moment you are detained, your right to counsel under section 10(b) of the Charter is engaged. The police must tell you about that right and give you a reasonable opportunity to use it. How that unfolds is often central to the case later on.

Impaired operation focuses on your ability to drive being affected by alcohol or a drug — proven through observations like driving pattern, balance, speech, and odour, not only a number.

“Over 80” is about the number itself: having a blood alcohol concentration at or over 80 mg of alcohol in 100 mL of blood. You can be charged with this even if your driving looked fine.

Refusing or failing to comply with a lawful breath demand is its own offence — and it carries penalties at least as serious as an over-80 conviction. Declining to blow is not a loophole; it is a separate charge.

Even a first impaired driving or over-80 conviction carries a mandatory minimum penalty set by the Criminal Code — a fine that starts at $1,000 for the lowest readings and increases with the blood alcohol concentration, along with a mandatory driving prohibition. A conviction also creates a criminal record.

The knock-on costs are often what hit hardest: a sharp rise in insurance premiums, the cost and inconvenience of Ontario's mandatory education or treatment program and ignition interlock, and — for anyone who drives for work or needs to cross the border — real consequences for employment and travel. That is why these charges are worth defending carefully rather than simply pleading out.

The two most common are talking too much and waiting too long. You are not required to explain your night to the police, justify how much you had, or argue your side at the roadside — and doing so rarely helps. Exercise your right to remain silent and your right to speak with a lawyer.

Waiting is the other one. Disclosure — the evidence the Crown must hand over — takes time to obtain and review, and some steps that may help with your licence are time-sensitive. The earlier a lawyer is involved, the more room there is to act.

These are technical, defensible cases. To secure a conviction the Crown has to prove every link in the chain: a lawful stop, a proper demand, an approved instrument that was maintained and operated correctly, and that your Charter rights were respected throughout.

A defence is built by testing each of those links. Was there a lawful basis for the stop and the breath demand? Were the instrument's calibration and maintenance records in order? Were you given a real, prompt opportunity to speak with counsel? Where the police fell short, evidence can be excluded under section 24(2) of the Charter — and without the breath readings, an over-80 prosecution often cannot stand.

Write down everything you remember while it is fresh — the time of the stop, what was said, when and how you were able to call a lawyer, and what happened at the station. Keep every document the police gave you, including any notice about your licence suspension and vehicle impoundment.

Do not post about the incident or discuss it with anyone but your lawyer. Then get advice quickly. A free, confidential consultation costs you nothing and lets you understand the charge, the licence consequences, and your realistic options before any deadline passes.