NEWS RELEASE
NIAGARA REGIONAL POLICE
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On Sunday, June 30, members of the Niagara Regional Police conducted R.I.D.E. check points within the Cities of Port Colborne and Niagara Falls for the Canada Day long weekend.
At approximately 9:15 p.m., the first sobriety check point was established near Sherkston Shores in Port Colborne. In the following two hours, approximately 500 vehicles were stopped and each driver was questioned whether they consumed any alcohol or drugs earlier in the day. A total of 15 drivers were requested to provide a breath sample with each of them providing a sample within the acceptable range.
Police then set up on Lundy's Lane in Niagara Falls and stopped another 150 vehicles. Five more drivers were requested to provide a sample of their breath for analysis. Once again, they all provided a sample in the acceptable range and were allowed to drive away.
Police, however, did come across a few drivers where an odour of cannabis was present. As a result of the investigation, there were three charges laid against the drivers for having cannabis readily available to them and a further charge issued to a person under 19 years of age for possessing cannabis. In addition to these drug charges, another eight tickets were issued to drivers for various traffic offences.
The Niagara Regional Police Service remain committed to reducing impaired driving offences through education and the apprehension of offenders through enforcement programs like R.I.D.E. Impaired driving is still the leading criminal offence causing deaths in Canada.
This initiative has been made possible, in part, as a result of grant funding from the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services as part of the Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (R.I.D.E) program.
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