A drunken, swerving drive along a local highway has earned a McLeod Lake man a four-month conditional sentenced order - effectively house arrest - and a one-year driving prohibition.
Gale Alan Joseph Crossland, 59, was issued the term Friday for a June 30, 2017 incident on Highway 97 North. He must also pay a $1,500 fine and $550 in victim surcharges.
Crossland was heading back to the community from Prince George when, starting at shortly before 8:30 p.m., RCMP received three reports of a pickup truck carrying a large round hay bail slowly swerving shoulder to shoulder and into the opposing lane.
He veered close enough to one oncoming vehicle to clip its side-view mirror. Because that driver's side window was open, she was sprayed with shards of glass leaving her with cuts to her face and arms.
That his behaviour didn't lead to a more serious and potentially fatal collision was "quite frankly, a miracle," provincial court judge Susan Mengering commented in issuing the term.
Because the Canada Day long weekend had effectively started, RCMP were already out patrolling the highway. One Mountie driving an unmarked vehicle spotted Crossland after receiving an alert, and activated his lights and siren and tried to pull him over.
But Crossland, who was traveling at about 80 km/h in a 100 km/h zone, did not comply. Suspecting Crossland was too nervous to safely come to a stop, the officer turned off the emergency signals but continued to follow him with his dash camera recording the drive.
He also radioed ahead to another officer who laid out a spike belt. It flattened the two front tires on Crossland's truck but he still continued for another 1 1/2 kilometres before stopping shortly after 9 p.m. - about four minutes after he was first seen by police.
Crossland was belligerent and uncooperative, prompting one officer to spray his eyebrows with pepper spray with the intention that it would drip into his eyes. When that didn't work, he was taken to the ground and put into a wrist lock. Each of two officers had also pulled out their guns at points during the arrest.
Crossland was taken back to the detachment where he blew 190 and 200 milligrams per litre of breath, well over the limit of 80 milligrams.
As to how he became so drunk is uncertain. Crossland later admitted he had been drinking heavily the night before at his home in McLeod Lake while watching movies after ending his workweek. After sleeping in, he got up and took his monthly trip into Prince George, picking up the hay in Salmon Valley on the way.
Once in the city, he ran some errands including a stop at the government liquor store in the Hart. Police found two 24-packs of unopened beer and a 750 millitre bottle of whiskey that, according to a police report, had been opened but, judging by a photo of the bottle, was pretty much full. Other than his arrest, Crossland could not recall any events from the drive back from Prince George. From the account, Mengering inferred Crossland was still drunk when he got behind the wheel and left McLeod Lake.
Crossland's behaviour on that day was "completely out of character" the court was told. Other than a half-dozen speeding tickets from more than 20 years ago, his driving record was clean and he had no previous criminal record. He was described as "gentle" and a "family man" in letters of support.
He pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and even before an expert's report had been produced, and has since taken counselling through his employer for alcohol abuse. He also provided the judge with a letter of apology.
The incident earned enough demerit points on his licence for Crossland to suffer a $3,800 penalty on his insurance premium. His vehicle was also impounded for 90 days following his arrest. And ICBC has issued a demand for nearly $6,000 in reimbursement for the injuries and damages related to the vehicle he clipped.
Under the terms of a joint submission on sentencing from Crown and defence counsels, he pleaded guilty to one count each of driving with a blood-alcohol level .08 and dangerous driving, both under the Criminal Code, while four other charges, including hit and run, were stayed.
Crossland was also issued the minimum length allowed for a driving prohibition at one year. Because he works in Mackenzie, a roughly 50-kilometre commute one way, he and his partner - who will be driving him to work each day - will suffer greater hardship than many, the court was told.
Under the terms of the conditional sentence order, he is prohibited from going off his property except from noon to 6 p.m. on Sundays, in the event of a medical emergency and for the purposes of his employment.
