[NikiterZTS]

So anybody else heard about it today? One lawyer i know told me about this around 2 weeks ago but since i never heard anything on the radio or tv i never thought anything of his statement.

First article:

"A newly enacted provincial law that targets dangerous drivers has been ruled unconstitutional.

Ontario’s street racing and stunt driving legislation carries a possible prison sentence, but gives the accused limited grounds for defence, a Napanee judge found.

Ontario Court of Justice Judge G J Griffin made the decision Friday.

However, that doesn’t mean cops will stop handing out tickets.

“From what I understand of that legislation, it was just on that individual case,” OPP Sgt. Dave Woodford explained Wednesday on Breakfast Television.

“We’re still enforcing it.”

In a weekend safety blitz, the Ontario Provincial Police found over 7000 infractions on our highways.

That included 133 impaired driving charges, 7193 speeding charges and 10 of the controversial stunt driving charges.

“Under the stunt driving and street racing legislation there are a lot of different definitions and one of them is going more than 50 kilometres an hour over the posted speed limit.

“That’s the portion of it that we mainly deal with on the highways, but there are others, like going through intersections,” Woodford added.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Laying Down The Law
What does the new law against street racing and stunt driving call for? Here's the list:

-The minimum fine is $2,000 while the maximum is $10,000 after a conviction, the highest penalty in Canada.

-Police can issue an immediate seven-day driver's licence suspension and seven-day vehicle impoundment for street racing, participating in a driving contest or stunt driving.

-Courts can impose a driver licence suspension of up to 10 years for a second conviction, if the second conviction occurs within 10 years of the first.

-For a first conviction, the maximum licence suspension period remains at 2 years.

-The definition of a "driving stunt" includes driving a motor vehicle at 50 km/h or more above the posted speed limit.

-The Act also bans driving a motor vehicle on a highway with a connected nitrous oxide system. Some street racers use nitrous oxide to enhance the acceleration capabilities of their vehicles."

http://www.citytv.com/toronto/citynews/new...-to-lay-charges



Second article:

"An Ontario judge has ruled that a section of the province's stunt driving law is unconstitutional because it exposes an extreme speeder to a possible jail term, without any ability to defend against it.

The law applies to anyone driving 50 kilometres per hour above the speed limit.

In a ruling delivered Friday in a Napanee courthouse, Justice Geoffrey J. Griffin said someone who is speeding that much cannot advance a "due diligence" defence, and is therefore exposed to a jail term that contravenes the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

He said there is no issue with the validity of the law's other penalties - automatic driver suspension, immediate impoundments of the vehicle or a minimum fine of $2,000. "The only issue is the possibility of imprisonment for up to six months for an ‘absolute liability'," which is an offence that, once proven by the facts, cannot be defended against.

The decision came in the case of an Oakville grandmother who was found guilty of stunt driving for going more than 50 kilometres above the posted limit while passing a tractor trailer.

Jane Raham, 62, appealed the case to the Ontario Court of Justice, where her lawyer Brian Starkman succeeded in arguing that someone who is speeding 50 kilometres above the limit surely knows it, making it impossible for an accused to argue that he or she took steps to prevent it.

"The way the section is structured a person charged with this offence has no reasonable means by which they can defend themselves," Mr. Starkman said in an interview. It is not known if the Crown intends to appeal the decision.

In 2007 the Ontario government enacted strict new rules under The Highway Traffic Act that prohibit racing or stunts, defined as a number of behaviours including driving with the intention of lifting wheels off the ground or speeding 50 kilometres over the limit.

Ontario Provincial Police Sergeant Dave Woodford said the ruling has no impact on how police will enforce the law. "It's an individual case," he said. "We're going to still be enforcing the stunt driving legislation, and people will still lose their licence and have their vehicle impounded for the seven days. [It's] business as usual." He said that there has been a "significant reduction" in fatalities on the roads since the legislation came into effect. "Speeding is the number one cause of a lot of our fatal collisions," he said.

According to court transcripts, Ms. Raham was driving an Audi from Kanata, where her daughter had recently given birth to twins, to her home in Oakville on April 28, 2008, when she sped up on Highway 7 to pass a tractor trailer. She was clocked at 131 kilometres an hour in an 80 kilometre zone. She slowed down afterwards to a 110 speed. The judge noted that the police officer testified "that there was nothing unsafe or remarkable about Ms. Raham's lane change, and that the only evidence pertaining to the charge was the speed as indicated on the measuring device." Ms. Raham testified that she usually drives on the less-traveled highway in order to avoid big trucks because they make her uncomfortable.

"If one were asked to describe a stunt driver, the appellant would not immediately spring to mind," Justice Griffin said. He acquitted her of the charges."

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=1976215