Bilijk woman fined for driving drunk
Other motorists reported Francine Elizabeth Francis, 46, was all over road this summer
A Bilijk (Kingsclear) First Nation woman says she’s been through detox and is going to rehab for her alcoholism after she was busted for impaired driving this summer.
Francine Elizabeth Francis, 46, of Kingsclear Avenue, pleaded guilty in Fredericton provincial court Wednesday to impaired driving.
Crown prosecutor Jennifer Bueno said the Fredericton Police Force received calls from motorists about an erratic driver who was all over the road on Prospect Street.
Officers responded to the area and spotted the suspect vehicle - driven by Francis - driving oddly, she said.
Police saw her car make a long, slow wide turn into a parking lot, the prosecutor said, striking the curb along the way.
Once it was in the parking lot, Bueno said, it almost struck another curb and narrowly avoided hitting another vehicle. When Francis brought the car to a stop, court heard, she parked it crookedly, diagonally across the lines of a parking spot.
Police approached her and noted signs of impairment, the prosecutor said.
“She stated her last drink was at 6 a.m.,” Bueno said.
Later, at the police station, a breathalyzer test revealed her blood-alcohol level to be 130 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. Anything 80 mg or higher is over the limit.
Bueno said the real danger Francis posed to the public June 29 is an aggravating factor in the case.
The defendant has a prior criminal record that includes a conviction for impaired driving, she said, but she noted it was quite dated.
As such, the prosecutor asked the court to impose the mandatory minimum fine and driving prohibition - which, given the breathalyzer reading, would be $1,500 and one year in Francis’ case.
Duty counsel Melinda Ponting-Moore said the offender has recognized she has a problem and has taken steps to address it.
“She’s connected to some resources [in her community],” she said.
Francis said she’s been through detox and is going to go to a rehab program for her drinking problem.
“I’m so sorry,” she told the court.
“She lives on social assistance,” Ponting-Moore said. “She needs the maximum time to pay [the fine].”
Judge Mary Jane Richards gave Francis a year to pay the $1,500 fine, noting if she makes efforts to pay regularly, she can apply for an extension if she can’t get it all paid down by then.
The judge also waived the customary 30 per cent victim-fine surcharge, which would have added $450 to Francis’ fine.
Richards also prohibited Francis from driving anywhere in Canada for a year.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.
Why did she get off so easy?