Mandatory alcohol screening by police sparks debate in Saskatchewan

The debate is continuing around the ability of police in Saskatchewan to conduct alcohol screenings at any time, regardless of why they stop a driver.

In March, the Regina Police Service announced that officers would require drivers who they pull over to take a mandatory roadside alcohol screening test.

The RCMP in Saskatchewan is following that same practice, and implemented the mandatory screenings across the province on Monday.

Since 2018, the Criminal Code has allowed police to demand a breath sample without any reasonable suspicion that a driver is impaired.

The decision by Regina police and the RCMP has sparked debate in this province, as some feel it’s fair and others don’t.

Lou and Linda Van de Vorst are advocates against drunk driving. Their son Jordan was killed, along with his wife and their two kids, after they were involved in a car crash with a drunk driver on New Year’s Day in 2016.

“I think that’s a great initiative for them to get going on it,” Lou said when asked for his thoughts on the move by police.

“I believe it’s been a long time coming, and I really hope it helps getting the number of impaired drivers off the roads and lowers the amounts of impaired driving deaths in Saskatchewan as well. They’re far too high.”

“There are drivers with impairment driving during all hours of the day,” added Linda. “What an awesome opportunity when you do have to stop someone. It only takes less than a minute to do it, and you aren’t hurting anyone if you haven’t been drinking.”

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) supports getting impaired drivers off the roads, but isn’t too fond of the new actions being taken recently by Mounties and Regina police.

“The CCLA is seriously concerned about that practice,” said Shakir Rahim, the director of the association’s criminal justice program.

“We opposed the introduction of being able to take a mandatory breath test without reasonable suspicion when that was first introduced by Parliament. It’s our view that there should always be a threshold before a person is able to be searched in that manner, and our concerns are compounded when we hear about a police force that is going to make it a matter of policy to use that provision any time they make a traffic stop.”

Rahim suggested that testing every driver who’s pulled over won’t be as effective as police may think.

“We don’t think this is one of those effective solutions.” he said.

“At the time that this provision of the Criminal Code that allows police to make these requests was introduced, we analyzed some of the underlying studies and data to see if this type of power actually reduces the rate of impaired driving, and we did not see in other jurisdictions that have introduced this kind of provision a marked drop compared to different types of interventions that are more Charter compliant.”

Rahim said the CCLA feels that setting up more checkstops would help catch more impaired drivers than screening every driver who’s pulled over would.

The Van de Vorsts, on the other hand, said their family has suffered a lifelong hurt by losing someone to an impaired driver, and don’t think this is an overreach by police.

“There’s no comparison,” said Linda. “Our loss is far greater than a minute of someone’s time.”

“Impaired driving is such a problem, and I think we have to do something,” Lou added. “The current situation where they don’t check people is not acceptable to us. This is just one extra way to catch those people who are driving impaired.

“It’s time to change. It’s been too long that people just accept the fact that impaired driving is part of the culture and part of the way we live. We need to change that, and this is just one way to get that message across to people.”

Lou said he thinks screening every driver who’s pulled over should become the standard for all police departments. He also called for stiffer penalties when an impaired driver is caught.

“The penalties for impaired driving should be strong enough to make people pause and think ‘I don’t want to be driving impaired,’ ” he said. “People think ‘I’ve only had one or two drinks,’ but one or two drinks could be the cause of life or death for somebody.”

According to the RCMP, Saskatchewan Mounties charged more than 1,700 people with impaired driving in 2023, and alcohol was a factor in a third of all fatal collisions.

While the RCMP and Regina police have experimented with the mandatory breath tests, the Saskatoon Police Service has so far remained quiet. But according to a statement from the police service, it appears something similar could be coming soon.

“We are currently working on an educational package for our own officers which will see us expanding the use of Mandatory Alcohol Screening within the Saskatoon Police Service,” the department said.

The Saskatoon Police Service also noted that it was the first police agency in the province to deploy an impaired driving testing unit – a van that allows officers to do both alcohol and drug testing at the roadside, while a checkstop is happening.