A man who took a wild ride in a stolen SUV and ended up in the Partici-park in Riverside, was sentenced in provincial court last Friday.
    Carmen Briault appeared in provincial court in Drumheller on Friday, September 27. He pleaded guilty to a number of charges including an early afternoon traffic incident that saw two vehicles destroyed on Riverside Drive.

A man who was driving a stolen SUV when it collided with a parked car and then lost control on Riverside Drive received a global  sentence for this and two other previous charges.

    On September 4 at about 5 p.m., an SUV  was taken from the DVSS parking lot. A few moments later, Briault, who was driving the truck, collided head on with a parked vehicle on Riverside Drive. Witness accounts say the vehicle fled the scene of the collision and continued along Riverside. It lost control near 12th Street and ended up in the Partici-park.
    He was taken from the scene by ambulance and showed signs of impairment. He pleaded guilty to operating a motor vehicle while impaired and theft of a motor vehicle.
    Briault also pleaded guilty to assault from a previous incident on August 15. In the early morning hours, he approached a man outside a business, pushed him to the ground and walked off. There were no injuries.
    He also pleaded guilty to an impaired driving charge from the early hours of August 25.  RCMP observed the driver make a wide turn entering Highway 9 and then swerve as it travelled down the road.
The court heard that Briault has longterm substance abuse issues and his impairment in one of these instances was related to the use of a prescription drug with alcohol.
    The crown and defense agreed on a joint submission of one year in jail, followed by a two year driving prohibition. Briault was given credit for 24 days in custody he served awaiting last Friday’s appearance.

Police focusing on seat belts in October

    The Alberta Traffic Safety Plan for October is focusing on occupant restraints and the Drumheller RCMP will be conducting various enforcement activities pertaining to seatbelts.
    Seatbelts are the single most cost effective life saving device to protect occupants in a motor vehicle collision.   
It is the law to buckle up in all seats of the vehicle; otherwise, occupants become a deadly weapon to others in the vehicle.  
 Wearing your seatbelt is a simple action that could make the difference between life and death.  The  use of occupant restraints reduces the likelihood of sustaining an injury and the severity of injury decreases as well.  
    Research and collision investigations show that seatbelts increase the chances of survival in a collision by 50%.  According to Transport Canada, almost 40% of drivers and passengers killed in collisions were not wearing their seatbelt at the time of the crash.
    It takes seconds to buckle up and a lifetime to make up for a loss.
Facts to Know:
· In Alberta, wearing a seatbelt is required by law.
· In Alberta, the fine for not wearing a seatbelt is $115. Drivers are also responsible for the proper restraint of children under 16.
· Passengers are not exempt from the consequences of fines, injuries or deaths resulting from not wearing a seatbelt.
· Occupants using a restraint reduce the likelihood of sustaining an injury and the severity of injury decreases.
· Seatbelts save about 1000 lives per year in Canada.
· Seat belts distribute the force of a collision evenly to the stronger parts of a person’s body. In a crash, a vehicle travelling 50 kilometres per hour comes to an abrupt stop in 1/100th of a second. At 50 kilometres per hour, an unrestrained person, weighing 80 kilograms (176 pounds), will strike whatever they hit first with a force of 2,785 kilograms (6,215 pounds).
· Airbags only function properly if the occupant is restrained in a proper position by a seat belt. Airbags deploy at an explosive speed and can cause injury if the occupant is not properly positioned. Airbags are a supplemental device.
· Vehicles are designed with an engineered life space, which can withstand the force of most impacts. Seatbelts keep occupants in this space where they are safest.
· In a collision, one unrestrained occupant increases the risk for all occupants in the vehicle. An unrestrained occupant may hit something or someone inside the vehicle; or they may be thrown from their vehicle into another object.
· Child safety restraints are required by law for children under the age of 6 who weigh less than 18 kilograms (40 pounds).
· A child under 10 kilograms (22 pounds) and one year of age is safest in a rear facing child restraint. Be sure to consult the owner’s manual for guidelines.
· Forward facing child restraints should have shoulder straps that originate at or above the shoulders.
· Booster seats are recommended for children under the age of 9, 18 to 36 kilograms (80 pounds) or 145 centimeters (58 inches).
· Without a booster seat, a child is four times more likely to suffer a significant injury.
· Children under the age of 12 are safest in the back seat of a vehicle in proper restraints based on their age, height and weight.