Halifax police warn against impaired driving after four separate arrests

CITYnews halifax / By Mark Hodgins

Halifax RCMP say four people were arrested in less than a week in separate impaired driving incidents.

On Saturday, Jan. 17, officers were called around 8 p.m. to reports of a man who had been injured after rolling a tractor on a property in Dufferin Mines. The man, 56, failed a roadside breath test, police say, and was issued a blood demand before being taken to hospital for treatment of injuries.

The next incident happened on Monday afternoon as officers were called to reports of a man passed out in a van on Fall River Road. The RCMP says the 80-year-old man from Waverley was found with open alcohol in his vehicle.

The man registered two breath samples at 120 and 130 mg per cent and was charged. He’s been released with a future court appearance in Dartmouth.

On Tuesday, around 8:30 p.m., officers were called to a vehicle that went through a guardrail on Highway 7 in Westphal. A 24-year-old man from Eastern Passage was getting help from emergency crews after the vehicle landed upside down in a ditch.

Related:

• Half of impaired driving charges were called in from concerned bystanders: HRP
• Man charged with impaired driving after weekend fatal crash in Dartmouth
• Off-duty cop arrested at restaurant for impaired driving; police seize gun

The man was taken to hospital where he was arrested for impaired driving.

The final incident happened later Tuesday night, as police were called to a dispute at a home on Cox Lane Road in Hammonds Plains. The Mounties say a 31-year-old man on an ATV, who officers were told had been drinking, refused to follow directions to stop.

The man eventually refused a breath sample and was arrested. He is expected in court at a later date.

“Drivers who use drugs or alcohol and get behind the wheel risk their lives and the lives of everyone else on the road,” the RCMP said in a media release.

People are asked to report suspected impaired drivers by calling 911.