Laws too lax on drunk driving, advocate says after Labrador fire chief convicted

Josephine Gaulton-Rowe says laws should be stiffer to combat impaired driving. (Jacob Barker/CBC)

An impaired driving sentence handed down to a Labrador fire chief shows the justice system isn't doing enough to deter drinking and driving, says the Labrador West vice-president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Josephine Gaulton-Rowe says she's frustrated by the case, and doesn't know what it'll take for people to listen to advocates' pleas to drive sober.

"We don't know what else we can do to try to get through to people," she said. "This [impaired driving] kills people every single day in Canada."

She expressed her frustration in an interview following the news that Wabush fire Chief Martin Butler, recently pleaded guilty to impaired driving.

In December last year, an anonymous tip alerted the police to a driver behaving erratically. Police found Butler swerving in his Ford F-150.

After pulling him over, they used a breathalyzer and found his blood alcohol level to be twice the legal limit.

According to the agreed statement between Butler and prosecutors, Butler will be fined $1,500 and his license will be suspended for a year. He is currently on leave and the fire station has an interim fire chief.

Butler has declined to comment.

Gaulton-Rowe, who's worked with Butler on community events including educational initiatives for MADD, says she felt "shock, disappointment, and anger" upon hearing the news.

"We all make mistakes in our lives," she says. "But you know what? With impaired driving, sometimes you don't get the chance to go back. If you've had a crash, and you've injured or killed somebody, that changes so many lives, and you don't get to go back from that."

She says she doesn't understand why impaired driving is still so prevalent.

"I don't see it ending until we have zero tolerance," she said.

A zero-tolerance system will eliminate any guesswork, she says. This means a person won't have to wonder if they can drive after one glass of wine or two glasses — it should be none, she says.

Although the laws have changed over the years, Gaulton-Rowe says they are still not strict enough.

"If I drive impaired, my vehicle is gone," she says. "There's no, 'you lose it for seven days and you lose your license.' Your vehicle is gone."

"I think things need to change more. Will I see it in my lifetime? Probably not. But obviously, people are not understanding how important it is. People are dying needlessly, every day."

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