But when Christopher Pevec came back, he was behind the wheel of a car and showed signs of being impaired. Back at headquarters on March 7, Pevec refused to give police a sample of his breath and left with a second charge.
Just more than five weeks later, the 36-year-old Corunna resident pleaded guilty in Sarnia court to the latter.
Defense lawyer Terry Brandon explained her client had a dispute with his girlfriend that night and left, as he didn’t want to escalate the issue, but got behind the wheel of a Pontiac.
“He ought not to have done that,” she said. “He appreciates that fully, that he should not have got behind the wheel.”
Pevec declined a chance to address the court after pleading guilty this past Tuesday.
Police were initially called around 1:30 am that Monday to a Murray Street home. About an hour later, Pevec refused to give police a breath sample when officers couldn’t get in touch with his lawyer.
Brandon said it was regrettable he wasn’t able to reach her or another lawyer at the time about co-operating with police and supplying a breath sample.
“It was just the circumstances of the evening, which are most regrettable,” she said.
The minimum fine of $2,000 for failing or refusing is higher than a first-time impaired-driving conviction.
As Pevec had no prior criminal record, Brandon and assistant Crown attorney David Nicol both suggested the minimum, along with the mandatory one-year driving ban. Justice Krista Lynn Leszczynski gave him credit for pleading guilty at a very early date – it’s rare to see a case conclude just five-plus weeks after charges first surface – and imposed the suggested penalties.
An impaired-driving charge was withdrawn.