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Court Briefs
Impaired driver opts for jail instead of fines

Katherine Hudson
Northern News Services
Published Wednesday, June 13, 2012

SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A man who drove while intoxicated more than two years ago was found guilty of impaired driving and fined $1,300 for that offence in Territorial Court on Friday.

He also was found guilty of failing to appear in court on April 16, 2012, for which he received 30 days in jail - time which he already served while in jail prior to his sentence.

On April 17, 2010, at about 7:20 a.m., the 28-year-old from Fort Good Hope was driving a black pickup truck as Yellowknife RCMP started following him as a possible impaired driver. The man stopped at the Shell gas station on Old Airport Road to pump up the truck's tires, then continued driving very slowly. The RCMP determined the licence plate was not for the truck and signaled for the driver to pull over on Williams Avenue.

The man didn't pull over right away, and when he did, he pulled up on an angle. The police reported the man had bloodshot eyes and smelled of liquor. He had no driver's licence with him. The man agreed to a breath sample which showed he had a blood alcohol level of more than twice the legal limit.

In addition to the fine, the offender received a 15-month driving prohibition for the impaired driving charge and an additional $300 fine for not having a driver's licence at the time of the incident. Under the Criminal Code, instead of paying the fine, the offender can serve time in jail instead - also known as default time. The man instructed his lawyer to use the default time option. The fines equaled 20 days in jail, although given that the man served 42 days prior to sentencing, he had eight days left in custody at the Yellowknife Correctional Centre as of Friday.

"You were of real danger to the public," said Chief Judge Robert Gorin.

Guilty plea in cocaine, marijuana case

Robert Livingstone pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking in NWT Supreme Court Monday. Livingstone was charged under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act after police say they found him and another man, who has since been found not guilty, in a vehicle 40 km from Yellowknife with close to $100,000 worth of cocaine and marijuana on June 27, 2010. Sentencing is scheduled for June 25.

Shoplifting, assault case waits on medical information

A man accused of shoving a 62-year-old woman out of the way while fleeing the downtown Extra Foods in April will enter a plea at his next court appearance if the Crown obtains certain medical information, defence lawyer Thomas Boyd said Tuesday.

Jacob Scott Griep, 28, has been charged with aggravated assault, shoplifting and breach of probation. He was in court Tuesday but his case was adjourned until July 10.

"Once the medical information is available, it will be better to enter a plea," Boyd said.

The woman who was pushed to the ground was treated and released from the hospital.

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