Parking Space Change-Up results in Impaired Driving Charges for Woman

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A 62-year-old Kingston woman is facing charges of impaired driving and operating a motor vehicle while in excess of the legal limit of alcohol after her brief time behind the wheel for the sole purpose of switching parking spaces.

At approximately 8:30 p.m. on April 13 the accused had been consuming alcohol in the privacy of her own residence located on Champlain Ave, but was asked to move her motor vehicle to trade parking spaces with someone else on the property. The woman began reversing her red Kia Soul straight backwards when she struck a neighbour’s parked vehicle on the street. The owner of the parked car happened to be outside at the time of the collision, and when speaking to the woman began to suspect she was under the influence of alcohol.

Kingston Police were called and responding officers formed grounds to believe the woman was operating the vehicle while impaired. She was arrested and upon arriving at the police station later provided breath samples to a technician that indicated she had approximately twice the legal limit of alcohol in her system. She was later released with a future court date. Her driver’s licence is automatically suspended for 90 days with a minimum one-year suspension upon her conviction. Her vehicle was also towed and impounded for seven days, where the accused is responsible for all associated costs, often averaging $800.