Is It Possible To Get Fired For A DUI?

If you have been charged for impaired driving or over 80, you may be worrying whether this could get you fired from your job more so if your job requires that you have a license. You may be concerned that your employer will terminate your employment and want to know if they have a legal basis to do so. The best way to get the answers that you need is to get proper legal advice and take note of the facts below.

Inform Your Employer About Your DUI

If your job requires you to drive or have an active license, you must immediately let your employers know if you have a DUI Charge as well as any development that follows. You must not operate a vehicle with a suspended license and your employers should not force you either.

If your license suspension is temporary, your employer can find you another task or role until you get your license back. If your loss of license is related to a disability or a disease (note that the Ontario Court of Appeal has declared that alcoholism is a disability) then your employer will be obliged to accommodate your loss of license as long as you are seeking proper treatment. This can mean being absorbed into another role in the company while your previous position remains open for you until you regain your ability to drive. If you will be fired for this, this might fall under disability-based discrimination in employment for which you could be entitled to general damages and wage losses compensation to be awarded by an Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.

When Can Your Employer Fire You Over a DUI?

An employer has no right to indefinitely suspend an employee following an impaired driving charge or an over 80 except in special circumstances. If the employer would do so, the employee will be deemed wrongfully terminated.

An employee on a contractual job with stipulations for termination of the contract if an employee were to be charged with a DUI can be fired legally. Some jobs require you to drive like a private investigator or delivery service.  Another situation wherein proper termination may be applicable is when the employee who has a DUI also happens to be involved in seriously negligent and dangerous behavior that could besmirch the employer’s reputation in the community. In some cases, the nature of the employer will be considered as well. For instance, if a person charged with a DUI is employed in an organization against drunk driving, then a misconduct related to drunk driving is a just reason for termination.

Know that each employment situation is unique when it comes to having a DUI charge. The laws and protections that may apply to you may vary based on the specific circumstances surrounding your DUI charge. The best way to get clear answers is to consult with an experienced DUI lawyer who is well versed with the defence of such cases. With the right information, you can retain your employment as well as avoid unnecessary tarnish to your name and to your employer. Contact Calvin Barry today if you’re looking for a DUI lawyer in Toronto.

Calvin Barry & His Wife Sophie

 Some photos of Calvin Barry and his wife Sophie. 

Throwback Thursday: Calvin Represents the 'Spice man'!

When Naveen Polapady threw Indian spices in the face of an alleged car thief, he became an instant social media hero in Toronto. 

With Calvin Barry as his lawyer, here are some articles detailing the incident and the events that followed:

• Spice man trial: ‘It felt like I was swallowing hot coals’
• Spice Man trial: Photos show cut and welts on man after confrontation with restaurateur
• Spice man trial: Assault victim asked why he didn’t seek help at scene

Need the services of Toronto's best DUI lawyer? A DUI conviction can mean a stain on your record that can affect what jobs you can take, where you can buy or rent a home, how much insurance you’ll have to pay, and more. You need to ensure that you don’t hurt your chances of getting a DUI pardon as soon as possible and that you have a DUI lawyer that can mitigate your charges. Calvin Barry is a Criminal Lawyer in Toronto that can help with this. Contact Calvin Barry Law today!

Throwback Thursday: Calvin Barry Weighs in on the Rob Ford Crack Scandal

On the 7th year anniversary of Rob Ford admitting to smoking crack, we look back at Calvin's comments to the Toronto Sun. 

Toronto 2014 was a simpler time in Toronto, when our biggest news story was our crack smoking mayor. This Wayback Wednesday, we revisit this scandal in a Toronto Sun article featuring our very own Calvin Barry.

Full article test:

TORONTO - Punch drunk from revelation after revelation, there is one over arching question that seems to be ricocheting around the city.

With all the damning information that has emerged, why have no charges been laid against Mayor Rob Ford?

In these last tumultuous days alone, the imploding mayor has made some startling confessions: he’s smoked crack cocaine, he’s purchased illegal drugs during the last two years and he has indeed driven under the influence of alcohol.

And those are just his self-reported admissions of breaking the law. There are still the many other alleged episodes reported by Ford’s ex-staffers in explosive police interviews made public this week.

In these recently uncensored pages, there are at least two disturbing witness accounts of former staffers being in Ford’s vehicle while he was allegedly driving after consuming alcohol.

In the late spring of 2012, Jennifer Dwyer arrived at the mayor’s home to accompany him to an event. According to the court document, she texted another Ford employee to tell him the mayor was “impaired, driving very fast and that she did not know where she was going. Dwyer was scared in the vehicle.”

Former aide Chris Finkel told police he was a passenger in Ford’s Escalade on the way home from one of his high school football practices in the fall of 2012 when the mayor pulled over, grabbed a mickey of vodka out of an LCBO bag and in the space of two minutes, proceeded to chug it down between gulps of Gatorade. Ford then continued on his merry way.

Fickel was alarmed enough to wisely get out of the car. He said he regrets not reporting the incident.
Chief of Staff Earl Provost told investigators Ford was so intoxicated on the night of March 17, 2012 that he insisted on taking him home in a cab. But when the mayor got there, he got into his SUV and nearly struck the taxi as he speeded away.

The police themselves had Ford under surveillance this summer during Project Brazen — which is an interesting moniker in retrospect — and watched him having a boozy lunch before getting back behind the wheel “under the influence of alcohol and or drug but not to the state of impairment.”
How could they know that if they didn’t bother to pull him over?

“If #RobFord won’t resign, how much evidence is needed to press charges given his drinking & driving, drug use & other criminal acts?” asks Robert Zaichowski on Twitter.
How much indeed?

The mayor has even dared them. “If I did something illegal then arrest me,” Ford said in speaking to a radio interviewer 10 days ago. “Obviously, I haven’t.”

Police Chief Bill Blair will only say that his officers conduct their investigations and then place the evidence they gather before the Crown attorney to decide if charges are laid — which seems rather disingenuous considering police arrest people all the time using their own discretion.

But former Crown Calvin Barry explains that while “a lot of it is embarrassing and humiliating” there really isn’t enough here to make a charge stick against the mayor.

The allegations of drunk driving are simply hearsay, accusations made to police long after the fact. There’s no officer who stopped him, smelled alcohol or asked for a breath test. “You need evidence of impairment,” said Barry, now a defence lawyer. “Within hours, all the evidence evaporates.”

What about the admission of buying illegal drugs? Barry says a vague confession isn’t enough: the person would have to be specific about what kind of drug, when and where it was purchased. Police would have to have it tested to prove that it was really a narcotic and not some other substance. “We don’t have any of that here,” he said.

A current Crown attorney agreed, saying he also hasn’t seen enough to warrant a criminal charge. “There’s a very high threshold,” explained the prosecutor, who didn’t want his name used. “There’s no case here that you can prove beyond a reasonable doubt.”

But this Crown also predicts that may change in the near future.

“There’s some kind of play going on,” he said. “There must be something in the works. I can’t imagine this is the end of the show here.”

Effects and Consequences of Drinking and Driving

 

Drinking and driving can carry life-long consequences depending on the circumstances of the arrest. Not only do these consequences affect the individuals involved by them serving jail time, paying for fines, and losing one’s license, it can also lead to strains in relationships and financial difficulties that can hurt entire families. If you’re not sure how devastating drinking and driving can be, continue reading below.

What Defines Drunk Driving?

Drunk driving in Ontario is defined as operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol level that is ‘above 80’ or having more than 80 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood. Note that this blood alcohol level can vary between individuals who drank the same amount of alcohol based on their gender, weight, height, metabolism, body types, and other related factors. Some people may not seem impaired but have a high blood alcohol level. As little as one to two drinks can make an individual impaired if that individual has a slight frame and consumed the drinks within a short span of time.

Why is Drunk Driving Taken Seriously by the Law?

The consequences of operating a vehicle when impaired can result in loss of life and permanent physical damage if an accident occurs. This is why even first offences of drunk driving can face relatively severe fines compared to other run-ins with the law. Consequent charges of drunk driving are met with jail time, a criminal record, and fines. This is not an over reaction by the law because drunk driving remains as one of the top offences every year based on statistics.

How to Face a Charge of Drinking and Driving?

Because drinking and driving is treated as a serious offence, a charge should be legally addressed promptly. If you have been arrested for drinking and driving and Canada, you must hire a DUI lawyer as soon as possible to make sure that everything is clarified to avoid a criminal record or minimize the severity of the punishments legally. Calvin Barry is a criminal defence lawyer in Toronto who handles charges of drinking and driving as a DUI lawyer. Contact Calvin Barry today.

 

What to Know About Domestic Violence Charges in Canada

 

Are you aware that domestic violence is not explicitly written as an offence in the criminal code of Canada? Yet, a charge of domestic violence is taken more seriously than other forms of assault given the relationship between the victim who lives together with the alleged abuser under the same roof.

The Nature of Domestic Violence

Most cases of domestic violence occur between romantic partners and as a result, have a huge psychological and emotional factor that needs to be considered as well. It is a well-known fact that strong emotions can fuel people to act irrationally and do things that they may regret later. It is important that the complainant should be physically separated from the perpetrator to prevent escalation as well as other complications.

Is Physical Violence A Parameter for Determining Domestic Violence?

An alleged abuser does not have to physically hurt the victim for a case to fall under a domestic violence charge. Damaging property or preventing the use of someone’s belongings fall under domestic violence. Even a small physical damage to things can mean a charge of domestic abuse or violence. Verbal threats are likewise treated seriously alongside harassment.

Accusations May Mean a Charge

The police have a zero-tolerance policy for possible cases of domestic violence. An alleged victim’s words are enough for the police to get involved because the priority is to keep the victim safe in this situation.

Sentence for Domestic Charges

Different offences carry different punishments, with domestic offences often carrying heavier punishments because they are considered more severe than other forms of violence or assault. If you’ve been accused of domestic violence, it is important to make sure that you aren’t charge for things that you did not commit. Hire a good criminal defence lawyer and go over the details of your charge to scrutinize loopholes and to form a good defence with your attorney. Hire a criminal defence attorney to protect your rights. If you’re looking for a domestic violence lawyer in Toronto, contact Calvin Barry today.

Throwback Thursday: Calvin Barry Represents the 'Chinese Warren Buffet'

With convicted fraudster Weizhen Tang in the news this week, as the OSC watchdog warned investors to stay away from him after he served 6 years in prison for fraud, we look back to 2009 when Calvin Barry represented Tang.

https://www.thestar.com/business/2009/06/11/chinese_warren_buffett_facing_charges_of_fraud.html

https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/accused-ponzi-schemer-is-broke-lawyer-says-1.473842