Manitoba's stricter drunk driving law likely to result in about 4 lifetime suspensions a year on average

Ian Froese · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 12, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 hours ago

A caller Manitoba instrumentality aimed astatine punishing the drunk drivers who origin the astir harm to quality beingness volition effect successful an mean of astir 4 further radical receiving beingness licence bans each year, according to a CBC investigation of years' worthy of data.

People convicted of impaired driving offences that origin bodily harm oregon decease volition present person a lifetime licence suspension if they've been convicted of 2 specified offences wrong a 10-year period, nether a law that took effect past week. 

The estimated fig of driving bans owed to the caller authorities is based connected the fig of people who received a 10-year licence suspension — the erstwhile punishment for 2 of these offences — wrong a decade.

CBC News filed a state of accusation petition to get the fig of impaired driving suspensions implicit the past 19 calendar years, aft Manitoba Public Insurance refused to supply this information.

The mean of astir 4 caller beingness suspensions a twelvemonth proves the government's authorities — championed arsenic an important deterrent to drunk driving by justness curate Matt Wiebe — is inconsequential, said a mother who mislaid her 24-year-old girl to impaired driving successful 2022.

"Why would you walk the time, the energy, the wealth to contiguous authorities that's not going to marque a difference?" Karen Reimer said.

"It's pretend authorities to look similar Manitoba is moving toward tougher laws against impaired driving."

In an interrogation Wednesday, Wiebe said the state volition develop new drunk driving authorities this autumn that helium hopes volition include tougher penalties. He doesn't cognize erstwhile the measure volition beryllium introduced.

No answers for family, PCs connected statistics

Reimer's daughter, Jordyn, was killed successful the aboriginal hours of May 1, 2022, successful a two-vehicle collision astatine a Winnipeg intersection portion she, arsenic the designated driver, was connected her mode to prime up a friend.

Late past year, Tyler Scott Goodman was sentenced to 7 years successful situation aft pleading blameworthy to impaired driving and failing to halt astatine the scene.

In March, Karen Reimer spoke astatine a nationalist proceeding regarding the government's legislation, wherever she asked for statistic connected the fig of radical who were convicted doubly of impaired driving causing bodily harm oregon decease wrong 10 years.

She ne'er got an reply from the NDP government, nor did the Opposition Progressive Conservatives, who asked the aforesaid questions during question period.

The yearly mean of astir 4 caller beingness suspensions is around what she suspected, Reimer said on Wednesday.

"I don't deliberation that we tin say it's going to marque a large quality if it's lone going to beryllium affecting four impaired drivers a year."

From 2006 to 2024, a full of 72 radical were convicted of impaired driving causing bodily harm oregon decease doubly wrong a 10-year period, according to MPI figures.

Of those, 15 were convicted doubly successful a decennary of impaired driving causing death.

In 2024, 4 radical received 10-year bans arsenic a effect of impaired driving causing bodily harm. Nobody got the same prohibition for impaired driving causing death. In 2023, 1 idiosyncratic received each of these penalties.

Ontario prohibition aft 1 conviction

Reimer wants Manitoba to follow the aforesaid authorities as Ontario, which, starting this year, slapped anyone convicted of impaired driving causing decease with a beingness prohibition aft 1 conviction. 

"We're talking astir the privilege of driving. And if you've killed somebody, I deliberation that you suffer that privilege," Reimer said.

PC justness professional Wayne Balcaen put guardant an amendment to Manitoba's bill that would follow Ontario's lead, but the authorities turned it down.

He said the Tories inactive voted successful favour of the NDP's measure due to the fact that it is an betterment implicit the erstwhile law, but thinks the authorities missed an opportunity to make impactful authorities that would shape driver behaviour forever.

Balcaen besides proposed a beingness prohibition for anyone convicted of impaired driving if a idiosyncratic nether the property of 18 was besides successful the vehicle.

"The thought down that is [the youth] don't person the choice," helium said.

Wiebe said the government's caller instrumentality volition instrumentality an mean of nearly 4 unsafe drivers disconnected the roadworthy each twelvemonth — and that's a bully thing.

"We privation to spare those families and those communities the heartbreak of knowing that their loved one was earnestly injured oregon killed due to the fact that thing wasn't done," the justness curate said.

He said the government, portion evaluating new legislation, is exploring which further penalties could beryllium imposed provincially, since impaired driving laws are nether national jurisdiction.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving is progressive successful the province's consultations.

Eric Dumschat, MADD's ineligible director, said the enactment advocates for lengthy licence suspensions, with the possibility of the operator getting their licence back if they usage an intoxicant ignition interlock device.

He said people issued beingness driving bans sometimes take to thrust anyway, since they're already taxable to the longest imaginable ban.

Reimer said she wants the government to make stronger authorities with an all-party committee, on with victims' families, MPI and MADD.