A British Columbia man is headed to prison for nearly five years after being involved in a motorcycle crash that resulted in his 21st impaired driving conviction. Yes, you read that right—this guy has 21 impaired driving convictions on his record.
According to the Aabbotsford police department, this is reckoned to be a new Canadian record. Certainly not the kind of record you want, but in late December, a senior citizen got himself a sentence of almost five in jail after his latest convictions.
The charges stemmed from an incident the year before, on August 15th, 2022. This raises questions all on its own—why would it take more than a year to get to trial for a driver with such a dangerous record? If this man had so many convictions for driving impaired, wouldn’t it make sense for authorities to do their best to get him off the streets as soon as possible?
Leaving that point, here’s what the police press release said: “AbbyPD responded to a reported motorcycle accident in the 1800 block of Clearbrook Rd. The registered owner of the motorcycle was known to police for a history of prohibited and impaired driving offences.
“Upon police arrival, a passenger of the motorcycle was being treated by first responders for serious injuries. The driver who attempted to flee the scene before police arrival was identified with the assistance of witnesses.
“Through the course of the investigation, the driver, 66-year-old Roy Heide, was arrested for
driving while prohibited and detained for an impaired driving investigation. Mr. Heide’s blood
alcohol content was determined to be over two times the legal limit.
“On December 18th, 2023, Mr.Heide pleaded guilty to impaired driving, driving while disqualified
and driving while prohibited, receiving a total sentence of four years and 354 days in jail for this
incident.”
At least the incident was a motorcyclist crashing their own bike, not a cager crushing a biker—but note that even in this incident, another person was hurt. In this case it was the passenger.
The Abbotsford PD’s press release was full of concern over impaired driving, saying “Our frontline officers continue to be out enforcing impaired driving laws and taking a zero-tolerance approach to driving while impaired. We continue encouraging our community to report possible impaired drivers to the police.” And maybe they are working hard at keeping the streets safe—but CMG’s own writers have been greeted with total apathy when calling in impaired driving complaints, after encountering drunk/high motorists who are under the influence.
So. Keep this whole story in the back of your mind next time you’re riding on the street, and remember: Despite a lifetime of DUI convictions, this guy was still out on the streets in 2022. Beware of others like him, as the courts aren’t keeping these impaired drivers locked up.
