TWO more people from the North Shore - including one man licensed to drive commercial semi-trailers - are among those challenging 90-day driving bans they received after failing roadside screening tests for blood alcohol levels.
John Steward Blezard, 55, and Jean Paul Doiron, 39, both filed court challenges in B.C. Supreme Court Jan. 12, asking the court to overturn their driving bans as unconstitutional.
Blezard described himself in court documents as a Class 1 driver with an air brake and heavy trailer ticket and substantial experience operating large commercial vehicles. He said he was pulled over while riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle on East First Street in Vancouver on Oct. 5.
Doiron said in court documents he was pulled over while driving on Highway 1 in North Vancouver on Aug. 4 around 1: 45 a.m.
Both men took issue with the "fail" results of the roadside screening device. They join a West Vancouver real estate agent and dozens of other people who have filed lawsuits asking that their 90-day roadside driving bans be overturned, following a recent court ruling that struck down parts of B.C.'s new drunk driving laws.
At the beginning of December, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Jon Sigurdson ruled B.C.'s harshest administrative penalties for drunk drivers violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms because they allow police to impose criminal-style penalties without giving drivers a chance to appeal.
For now it's not clear what will happen to people who have recently been handed a suspension under the part of the law that's now been struck down.
"It's a mess," said local lawyer Jay Straith, who represents both North Vancouver men who filed suit this month. "This government doesn't like due process," he said. "That's all there is to it."
He added he represents five more people who will likely file similar lawsuits soon.
