North Bay police say a second impaired driver has been caught by ALPR, or plate recognition technology.
On April 7, a North Bay driver was stopped and arrested for impaired driving by drug, through the use of Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) technology. This is the second impaired driver within a week who was charged as a result of a traffic stop utilizing the new technology.
Officers were on general patrol on Main Street East when the system alerted them to a possible suspended driver.
"The officers began to follow the vehicle, and noted that it was driving in an erratic fashion, at which time they initiated a traffic stop," says Cst. Merv Shantz, "Upon speaking with the driver, the officers confirmed that he was a prohibited driver and he was also exhibiting signs of impairment."
A field sobriety test was administered and the driver was arrested. The 48-year-old man was taken to police headquarters, where a Drug Recognition Expert performed an evaluation on him, and he was found to be impaired by drugs.
The accused is not being named by police but is charged with:
- Impaired by drugs
- Operation while prohibited,
- Failure to comply with a probation order,
- Driving while under suspension
The accused’s vehicle was seized by police and impounded for seven days, and his driver’s license was suspended for 90 days. He was released on an undertaking with a future court date.
Automatic License Plate Reader technology is now installed in all North Bay Police Service patrol cruisers, as a way to alert officers to various offences, such as possession of stolen vehicles, suspended driver’s licenses and expired plates.
Police would also like to remind the public, that being caught when impaired by any type of drug, carries the same consequences as being impaired by alcohol.
