Impaired Driving

The minimum penalty for impaired driving is a $1,000.00 fine and a twelve month driving prohibition. If you plead guilty or are convicted of either impaired driving or refusing to provide a breath sample the judge has no discretion but to impose those penalties. Impaired driving offences are among the most complicated criminal cases that criminal lawyers are called upon to defend. It is virtually impossible for an unrepresented accused to successfully negotiate his or her way through and impaired driving trial. Even though you may have blown over .08 or refused to provide a breath sample there are numerous defenses that may be available to you and it is important that you consult with counsel to explore all your options.

Administrative Driving Prohibitions or 90 day driving suspensions

It is extremely Important that you consult counsel immediately after receiving such a suspension. Almost every individual charged with impaired driving or refusing to provide a breath sample will also have been given a 24-hour suspension and a 90-day suspension. You only have 7 days from the date of the incident in which to make an application for review of either one of those prohibitions. The consequences of not applying for review within the 7 days are fatal. In other words you have no opportunity to apply for the review once the 7 day period has elapsed. If you are charged with such an offence you should be aware that drivers who receive two 24-hour prohibitions in a two year period may be prohibited from driving by the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles for a further period of time.

Spousal or domestic Assault

In the vast majority of these cases the accused will be arrested and taken into custody and brought before a Provincial Court Judge or a Justice of the Peace the next morning. In most of these cases the accused is male. At the bail hearing, the Crown Counsel or Prosecutor will almost always seek a no contact order and a no go order to the residence in which the victim (usually the spouse or girlfriend of the male accused). Many of these bail hearings are conducted before the accused has had the opportunity to retain counsel. It is very important for the accused, once released, to seek and retain counsel who can assist him in getting those bail conditions varied so that contact can be resumed with the complainant and, if possible, previous living arrangements resumed. It is often a enormous financial strain on people caught in such circumstances because they then have to have two residences to maintain. These cases are often resolved through negotiation. That negotiation can, and often does, take a number of weeks and even months. It is important to have experienced counsel conduct these negotiations.

Shoplifting, theft, fraud

It is very important to consult experienced counsel before deciding to plead guilty to one of these charges. A conviction for theft or fraud can have very serious consequences for any form of future employment and possibly even jeopardize current employment. Almost all current Government jobs require a criminal records check. Remember even if you wish to plead guilty it is possible to avoid getting a criminal record and John Buchanan can help you in that regard.

Theft from an employer

A conviction for theft or fraud from an employer can often result in a jail sentence. Experienced defence counsel like John Buchanan can help you avoid going to jail.

Drugs and marijuana grow operations

The law involving the execution of search warrants and the seizure of drugs is a very complex one. It requires an experienced counsel to navigate you through the system. The Crown Prosecutor will invariably be seeking a jail sentence if you wish to plead guilty or in the event that you are convicted of such a charge. Experienced counsel will make certain that the police had reasonable and probable grounds to obtain a search warrant, make certain that search warrant was executed properly, and make every effort to see that if you are convicted or do plead guilty that you are able to get a conditional jail sentence which amounts to "house arrest."