Q&A - Release From Vehicle Impound

Long story short, my brother made a mistake and now my mother's car is in vehicle impound. He went out last night with some of his roommates, had a drink or 2 and ended up doing something incredibly stupid.

He's like the most responsible person I know, always lecturing me about school and how to plan for the future, helping me study and giving me study tips. He never goes out, stays home on the weekends and doesn't party. He pretty much lives in his own world and stays at home 95 percent of the time.

He just wanted to see his friends that we live about 40 minutes away from where he was tried catching a cab, wasn't able to and he ended up driving.

Since my mom needs the car in the morning, he got pulled over coming home. The officer made him blow into the breathalyzer and registered a FAIL on the test. He got a prohibition for failing the test and got my mom's car impounded for 90 days.

The cop spelled his name wrong on the ticket and my brother had to correct him and he filled it in, in pen on my brothers copy only!

I thought when you get a DUI that they're suppose to give you a certain reading? I my self am only 18 so not too sure on these rules.

He didn't issue him anything about a criminal record. I don't know how that works either.

My point is that my mom needs her car to get to work since she works 2 jobs. Is there any way she is able to get out of the vehicle impound early?

Any loop holes that he can fight it since the officer spelled his name wrong and since he didn't blow into a breathalyzer at the police station?

I would just greatly appreciate if you were able to help me out in any way to get my mom's car out of vehicle impound since she can't she afford to buy a new car while she waits to get it back!

I was also wondering if my brother would get a criminal record? The officer wasn't able to help him with that. He is terrified if he will get one or not since he already thinks his future is ruined and over!

Immediate Roadside Prohibition

Your brother has run into BC's Immediate Roadside Prohibition program for those who drink and drive. The FAIL on the approved screening device at the roadside means that he had a blood alcohol level over 100 mg%.

One cannot do that on only a drink or two. I had five bottles of beer over an hour when I weighed about 175 pounds and my highest sample for the day was under 100 mg%.

No Criminal Record

The screening device alone is sufficient for an IRP investigation and there is no need to take the driver back to the detachment for further testing. In fact, this tells me that the officer chose to use the IRP instead of the Criminal Code provisions to deal with your brother. He will not receive a criminal record for this incident.

Mandatory Vehicle Impound

Your brother received a 90 day driving prohibition from driving and your mother's vehicle was impounded for 30 days. The officer does not have any discretion with the vehicle impound.

Early Release of Vehicle

There is the possibility that the vehicle can be released on compassionate grounds or due to economic hardship. Acumen Law has an article on their website about this.

More Bad News

Since he is a Class 7N driver, he will receive a further prohibition from the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles in the near future. The guidelines for this are found in the Driver Improvement Program.

Spelling Error

Finally, I'm not sure that the mis-spelling of your brother's name is important, especially if all of the other information on the form is correct. I'm guessing that it only involves one of the first, middle or last name, not all of them.

The other names, birthdate, driver's license number and address would be correct and sufficient to identify him properly. It is also possible that the officer amended their copies in the same way before submitting them. If that is the case, it might be considered that he received a proper copy.

You may wish to receive proper legal advice on this by taking advantage of the Lawyer Referral Program.

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