Fifth conviction for impaired driving lands driver in jail for year

Coronach resident Dustin D. Hendricks will spend the next 12 months behind bars after pleading guilty to his fifth impaired driving conviction, after an incident nearly resulted in a head-on highway collision. Appearing in Moose Jaw provincial court on April 20, Hendricks, 35, pleaded guilty to driving while prohibited, unauthorized possession (of a firearm) in a motor vehicle, breaching probation and impaired driving. He received a one-year jail sentence for the impaired driving; a concurrent four-month sentence for operating a motor vehicle while prohibited; and two concurrent 30-day sentences for the unauthorized possession and breach of probation. He was also banned from driving for three years and had to forfeit his firearms.

The Crown stayed four other charges against him. Coronach RCMP received a call on March 1 about a possible impaired motorist driving south on Highway 36 near Crane Valley, explained Crown prosecutor Rob Parker. The officer attempted to pull over the vehicle several times, but each time Hendricks swerved from side to side and even into oncoming traffic.

The officer called headquarters and said he would stop his pursuit of Hendricks by turning off the lights and sirens but would continue to follow at a reduced speed and from a distance. Parker noted the officer saw a vehicle cresting the top of the hill while Hendricks was in that lane, but he swerved back into his lane at the last second. Hendricks travelled to the Village of Verwood — northeast of Willow Bunch — and pulled into the driveway of a home. The officer pulled in behind him, which caused him to flee and later crash into a light pole on Main Street, continued Parker. Hendricks staggered out of the vehicle and was arrested.

A search of the truck found two unsecured firearms: a 12-gauge shotgun and a .30-06 rifle. Hendricks has several prior convictions for driving under the influence or driving while disqualified, the Crown prosecutor said. This essentially makes him a “chronic offender.”

Hendricks works as a farmhand and has a son; he is also an alcoholic, said Legal Aid lawyer Suzanne Jeanson. He has taken treatment twice at the St. Louis Rehab Treatment Centre, while he significantly reduced his alcohol consumption between 2010 and 2018.

Inquiries have been made about Hendricks attending programming at Pine Lodge Treatment Centre in Indian Head, which is where his dad successfully took treatment. However, due to the pandemic, going there is currently not an option, she continued.

Being given a one-year jail sentence for his fifth impaired conviction is much harsher than his past convictions, Jeanson said. He received a fine and probation in 2018; jail is “a huge jump from the last conviction.” Jeanson asked that the victim surcharge be waived since she doubted Hendricks would be working in a year. This sentence is appropriate, but, unfortunately, a jail sentence had to be imposed, said Judge Brian Hendrickson. However, the sentence has to follow the criminal code recommendations for serial drunk-driving offenders.

“The driving actions themselves were a great risk … ,” the judge added, before imposing the sentence on Hendricks, who was then led by the court sheriff to jail.