How does this make the roads safer? Teach young people the right lessons? Conform with the evidence?
Jaffer pleads guilty to careless driving
Last Updated: Tuesday, March 9, 2010 | 12:19 PM ET Comments412Recommend148
CBC News
Former Conservative MP Rahim Jaffer pleaded guilty Tuesday in an Ontario courtroom to careless driving and must pay a $500 fine.
Jaffer had been charged with impaired driving and possession of cocaine but those charges were dropped. Jaffer will also donate $500 to charity.
Former Conservative MP Rahim Jaffer speaks outside an Orangeville, Ont., courthouse on Tuesday after pleading guilty to careless driving. Former Conservative MP Rahim Jaffer speaks outside an Orangeville, Ont., courthouse on Tuesday after pleading guilty to careless driving. (Amber Hildebrandt, CBC)
Outside the Orangeville courthouse, Jaffer apologized for his actions and acknowledged the seriousness of the charges. But he said he was pleased the ordeal was over.
"I'm relieved. It's been a long period that it's carried on," he said.
Crown attorney Marie Balogh said in court that after a careful review of the case, it was decided to drop the other charges because there were significant legal issues and no reasonable prospect of conviction.
"I'm sure you can recognize a break when you see one," Ontario Court Justice Doug Maund told Jaffer.
Jaffer's lawyer, Howard Rubel, said his client was adamant that he never drove while impaired and had always denied the drug allegations.
"What Mr. Jaffer did was drive without paying attention," he said.
In an agreed statement of facts, a Caledon provincial police constable had clocked Jaffer going 93 km/h in a 50 km/h zone through the village of Palgrave, northwest of Toronto, on Sept. 10.
Jaffer admitted he had consumed two beers two hours earlier. His breathalyzer test measured over 80 milligrams of alcohol.
Jaffer, a resident of Angus, Ont., was arrested after police stopped a Ford Escape that had been speeding through the village of Palgrave, northwest of Toronto.
Jaffer, who is married to Helena Guergis, the minister of state for the status of women, was elected in the Alberta riding of Edmonton-Strathcona in 1997 as a member of the Reform Party, which later morphed into the Conservative Party. He held the riding until his surprising defeat by an NDP candidate in the 2008 election.
In 2001, while a member of the Canadian Alliance party, Jaffer apologized to the House of Commons after admitting an aide impersonated him on a live national radio call-in show based in Vancouver. The aide resigned after the station confronted the two men about the hoax.
The party suspended Jaffer from his duties as chair of its small-business advisory committee, and he was demoted to the backbenches in the House of Commons.
Jaffer was not accompanied by his wife, who made headlines last week after she reportedly became verbally abusive with staff at the Charlottetown Airport. Guergis later apologized.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2010/03/09/jaffer-case.html#socialcomments#ixzz0hhrVkYr8
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Harper: Tough on Crime or Friends in high places?
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9 comments:
Or perhaps high friends in low places? Getting high with a little help from his low friends?
imho,
ir
m:
Good point! Wasn't it Harper who serenaded all Canadians with "I get high with a little help from my friends".
Brent
Woweeee , this is one fine upstanding couple!!
I am glad they are married to each other alright as they can be tased at a "bulk" rate.
Dr Mike Popovich
Rahim Jaffer Judge Doug Maund, a federal Tory, was appointed in 2000 by Jim Flaherty, then Ontario's attorney general.
24 minutes ago via TweetDeck
davidakin
David Akin
I guess it helps if you can hand pick your judge.
Dr Mike
I wonder what tax deductible charity Rahim will donate the required $500 to?
Mothers Against Drunk Drivers?
or
Mothers Against Drugged Drivers?
or
Campaign to re-elect Helena Guergis?
The Crown Prosecutor, Marie Balogh, who according to this story dropped the drug-related charges, is with the (Ontario) Ministry of the Attorney General: link.
Presumably then, the "high places" that you're referring to are those of the McGuinty government?
(To be clear, I'm not accusing Ms Balogh of *anything* untoward. These sorts of decisions are made by Crown prosecutors every day, and I've seen nothing that would call Ms Balogh's judgment in this case into question. I'm just curious if your "high places" shot was intended at the federal government, rather than the provincial government.)
Who did Rahim get the illegal drugs from?
Rahim Jaffer's radio ad in the last general election:
"Edmontonians understand how difficult it is to make sure our children make the right choices, especially on serious issues like drug use. The Conservative Party supports drug-free schools and getting tough with drug dealers who sell illegal drugs to children. Don't let our schools go up in smoke. On Oct. 14, vote Conservative."
Dick Richards
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