An off-duty Winnipeg police officer will not be charged criminally after he failed a roadside alcohol test and refused to provide another breath sample, the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba said.
An RCMP officer said officers stopped the man’s damaged pickup truck on Highway 44 in the area of Zimmerman Road, in the Rural Municipality of Whitemouth, after it crossed the centre line on the night of May 21.
An RCMP officer noted the driver, who at some point said he was a Winnipeg Police Service officer and complained of personal issues, put his tongue in front of the straw hole the first time he tried the screening device. He eventually failed the screening and refused a second test, the RCMP officer told the IIU.
“His words were slurred, he was stumbling, and his eyes were not focused when speaking,” the RCMP officer noted.
The WPS officer was given a 90-day driving prohibition and a $700 penalty, and his vehicle was impounded for 30 days. He was not charged criminally for driving above the legal limit of .08, impaired driving or refusing a breath demand.
Immediate roadside prohibition legislation allows police officers in Manitoba to give a driver administrative punishments instead of charging them with a Criminal Code offence.
Because of the refusal to provide a second breath sample, and damage to a fender, the IIU asked for a Crown opinion on whether criminal charges should be laid in the case.
“After a thorough examination of all of the facts, the Crown is of the view that charges are not warranted,” the report, released Friday, stated. “The arresting RCMP officer exercised discretion, consistent with discretion exercised in relation to other impaired drivers who were given immediate roadside prohibitions.”
The matter is now closed, the IIU said.
fpcity@freepress.mb.ca