Section 320.14 of the Criminal Code: Impaired Driving Explained
Section 320.14 creates four separate offences, not one. Impairment by any degree, being over 80, exceeding a prescribed blood drug concentration, and a combined alcohol-and-drug threshold are each independently chargeable.
Section 320.14(1) makes it an offence to operate a conveyance while impaired to any degree by alcohol or a drug, or to have a blood alcohol concentration at or above 80 mg per 100 mL, or a blood drug concentration at or above the prescribed level, within two hours of ceasing to operate.
What Are the Four Offences in Section 320.14(1)?
- Paragraph (a) — operating a conveyance while the ability to operate it is impaired to any degree by alcohol, a drug, or a combination.
- Paragraph (b) — having, within two hours after ceasing to operate, a blood alcohol concentration equal to or exceeding 80 mg of alcohol in 100 mL of blood.
- Paragraph (c) — having, within two hours after ceasing to operate, a blood drug concentration at or above the level prescribed by regulation.
- Paragraph (d) — having, within two hours after ceasing to operate, a combined blood alcohol and blood drug concentration at or above the prescribed levels.
The words 'to any degree' in paragraph (a) matter. There is no threshold of visible drunkenness; any degree of impairment of the ability to operate is enough.
It is also entirely possible to be acquitted on paragraph (a) and convicted on paragraph (b), or the reverse. They prove different things.
Sections 320.14(2) and (3) create aggravated offences where the operation causes bodily harm or death, and section 320.14(4) creates a lesser offence for a low blood drug concentration.
What Is the Two-Hour Rule?
Paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) are framed as having the prohibited concentration 'within two hours after ceasing to operate a conveyance'. This replaced the old formulation that tied the offence to the concentration at the time of driving.
Section 320.14(5) preserves a narrow exception for alcohol consumed after driving. It applies only where the person consumed alcohol after ceasing to operate, had no reasonable expectation of being required to provide a sample, and their alcohol consumption is consistent with the reading and with having had a concentration under 80 at the time of driving.
The practical effect of the change is that the 'I drank after I got home' argument, once a common defence, now succeeds only within those tightly drawn conditions and normally requires expert evidence.
What Are the Penalties Under Section 320.19?
Section 320.19(1) sets mandatory minimums that apply to both section 320.14(1) and section 320.15(1), the refusal offence.
| Offence history | Mandatory minimum |
|---|---|
| First offence | A fine of $1,000 |
| Second offence | 30 days' imprisonment |
| Third or subsequent | 120 days' imprisonment |
Section 320.19(3) raises the first-offence minimum fine where the reading was high: not less than $1,500 for a concentration of at least 120 but under 160 mg, and not less than $2,000 at 160 mg or above.
Where the operation causes bodily harm, section 320.2 sets a maximum of 14 years on indictment. Where it causes death, section 320.21 provides for life imprisonment.
What Powers Do Police Have to Demand a Sample?
Section 320.27(1) allows a demand where a peace officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that a person has alcohol or a drug in their body and has operated a conveyance within the preceding three hours. Section 320.28 allows a breath or blood demand where the officer has reasonable grounds to believe an offence under section 320.14 has been committed.
The distinction between suspicion and belief is not a technicality. It sets what the officer must have before each type of demand, and whether that threshold was met is one of the most common issues in these prosecutions.
Failing or refusing to comply with a demand under section 320.27 or 320.28 is itself an offence under section 320.15, carrying the same minimum penalties — and a higher minimum fine on a first offence.
Frequently asked questions
Browse every answer on this siteFour. Impairment to any degree, being at or over 80 mg within two hours, exceeding a prescribed blood drug concentration, and a combined alcohol-and-drug threshold. They are separate and can be charged together.
Section 320.14(1)(a) sets no threshold of visible drunkenness. Any degree of impairment of the ability to operate the conveyance, by alcohol or a drug, is sufficient.
Paragraphs (b) to (d) prohibit having the relevant concentration within two hours after ceasing to operate, rather than at the time of driving. A narrow exception for drinking after driving survives in section 320.14(5).
A fine of $1,000 under section 320.19(1), rising to $1,500 where the reading was at least 120 mg and $2,000 at 160 mg or above.
Section 320.27 permits a demand on reasonable suspicion that a person has alcohol or a drug in their body and operated a conveyance in the preceding three hours. Section 320.28 requires reasonable grounds to believe an offence was committed.
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This page is general information about Canadian law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create a lawyer-client relationship. Statutes are amended; provisions are described as at the consolidation reviewed when this page was written.
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