This came about from police officers and other emergency workers and vehicles were being hit by passing vehicles.
A driver who is approaching, on the same side of the highway as the emergency vehicle with its flashing lights (red or red & blue), activated shall slow down and proceed with caution. In addition, if there are more than two lanes of traffic on the same side of the highway and the emergency vehicle is in the same lane OR an adjacent lane, then the driver must, apart from slowing down, move to another lane if it is safe to do so. This applies to either half of a divided highway, depending on which side the emergency vehicle is stopped, the left shoulder or the right shoulder.
Apart from the three demerit points upon conviction, the fine ranges from $400 to $2,000 for a first offence and goes up to between $1,000 and $4,000 or to jail for up to six months or to both.
Why fight the charge?
It doesn’t take much for demerit points to mount up and before very long; your licence is under suspension. Protect your licence and your insurance premiums. Speak to a licensed paralegal at POINTTS before deciding on a course of action you may regret later.
Why POINTTS?
POINTTS’ team of Licensed Paralegals comprised of former police officers and college graduates have been trained to the highest standards and continue to have their skills and knowledge upgraded by their in-house trainer who’s responsible for ensuring all POINTTS paralegals comply with the Law Society of Upper Canada’s continuing professional development requirement.
Why a Licensed Paralegal?
Every charge must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt by the prosecution. POINTTS Licensed Paralegals have the knowledge, skill and experience to know if that burden has been met. A person trying to represent themselves is not likely to know what has to be proven, let alone whether proven beyond a reasonable doubt. We will look at the disclosure, research the relevant case law to be used in your favor and be able to recognize technicalities that would be fatal to the prosecution’s case against you. POINTTS paralegals know how to cross-examine witnesses. When questioning police officers, we know what the answers to technical questions should be so we know if the answer given is the right one, whereas most self-represented defendants would not.
Fines for a conviction on this charge range from $400 to $2000 for a first offence and on a subsequent offence, between $1000 and $4000 or to imprisonment for up to six months, or to both. In addition a licence may be suspended for up to two years, even on a first offence.
This legislation was introduced for officer safety after several officers were badly injured and in some cases killed as a result of drivers not moving out of the way when police were dealing with people or vehicles by the side of the road.
Quite often you will see a police car stopped behind another police vehicle that has its roof lights activated and has made a traffic stop.
This second police car is sometimes there to watch for vehicles that do not move from the lane closest to the police cars or other emergency vehicle and leave a lane clear while passing. It is very important for drivers to be very clear of their surroundings and be able to determine the presence of other vehicles that might prevent them from changing lanes. In any event, a reduction in speed is a must.
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