Impaired driving kills — a message police made abundantly clear with the site Sudbury police selected to launch this year’s Festive Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (RIDE) campaign.
Fittingly, the campaign to raise awareness of impaired driving’s dangers was held near Centennial Arena in Hanmer, overlooking the stretch of Municipal Road 80 where three teenagers were killed by an impaired driver on June 21, 2009.
The victims were Steven Philippe, 16, Jazmine Houle, 15 and Caitlin Jelley, 15.
“These three names everybody should know,” Greater Sudbury Police Service Insp. Bob Norman told Sudbury.com following Thursday’s speeches. “These three names are a symbol of the Festive RIDE and reasons why not to drink and drive.”
Driver Nicholas Piovesan didn’t stop after he hit and killed the three teens as they walked along the shoulder of Municipal Road 80 in Hanmer 15 years ago. Instead, he fled the scene and only stopped after crashing into a house. He was given a seven-year sentence and released in 2015.
The victims’ family members attended Thursday’s launch.
Anti-impaired driving advocacy is old hat for the families, who for several years operated Impact 6/21, an advocacy group whose annual walk drew attention to the dangers of impaired driving.
“It still happens,” Caitlin’s mother, Lisa Jelley, told Sudbury.com of why they’ve remained involved. “We hope people will remember what happened to them and why they died, and hopefully that will cause someone to make a better choice.”
Plan ahead to not drink and drive, Jazmine’s mother, Corrine Williamson, added.
“It’s common sense,” she said. “Vehicles are loaded weapons, when you think of them.”
Year to date as of Oct. 30, GSPS has laid 216 impaired driving charges, which is within an average range compared to recent years. Of them, 133 people were allegedly impaired by alcohol, 72 with drugs and 11 refused tests.
It’s unclear what the solution might be, Williamson said, but that tougher penalties might help alongside ongoing advocacy and public awareness efforts.
GSPS and the OPP conduct RIDE spot checks throughout the year, with Thursday’s media launch intended to serve as a public reminder prior to the holiday season.
“We ramp them up for every significant holiday or long weekend because we know that’s when parties happen, and celebrations happen for whatever’s going on in that month.”
Last holiday season’s Festive RIDE spot check effort nabbed six drivers allegedly impaired by alcohol and one impaired by drugs. They also issued eight three-day suspensions for blowing in the warn range, between a blood alcohol level of 0.05 and 0.079.
The majority of impaired drivers are caught during day-to-day police operations and people calling in people suspected of driving while impaired. Last year saw Greater Sudbury police lay 268 impaired driving charges, including 190 related to alcohol and 78 to drugs, plus 24 refusals.
GSPS has a “zero tolerance” policy when it comes to people making the decision to drive while impaired, Norman said, and offenders are always held to account.
“If you see or suspect somebody to be drinking and driving, call 911,” he told Thursday’s crowd, sending a message to the broader public. “It saves lives, bottom line.”
The annual Safe Ride Home effort is scheduled to begin on Nov. 29 and operate every Friday and Saturday through the holiday season, plus New Year’s Eve, for a total of 11 evenings.
Safe Ride Home Sudbury works in four steps:
- You feel unfit to drive home.
- You phone 705-675-2255.
- A team of two volunteers are dispatched to your location. One volunteer drives you and your passengers to your destination in your own vehicle while the other volunteer follows behind.
- Both you and your vehicle are safely home.
Last year’s Safe Ride Home effort delivered 865 drives to people’s homes in their own vehicles, and more information is available on the effort at saferidehomesudbury.ca/. Founder Lesli Green said volunteers have been signing up, but that they have plenty of room for more.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
