Judge cautions young man to steer away from impaired driving

A judge known for harshly admonishing drunk drivers was left shaking her head over a 19-year-old man who appeared before her on a second impaired driving charge.

“Just what is the problem?’’ Chief provincial court Judge Nancy Orr asked Brandon Jason Quinn before sentencing the young man to 90 days in jail for failing a breathalyzer.

Orr told Quinn it is a “matter of great concern’’ that he committed two impaired driving-related offences at a young age and within a short period of one another.

The most recent incident had plenty of aggravating factors.

First of all, Quinn was disqualified from driving when he decided to get behind the wheel on Nov. 3 in Kings County.

Next, Quinn chose to take another person’s vehicle without consent.

And third, he was intoxicated. Quinn crashed the car, resulting in a complete write-off that will cost him $3,000 in restitution to the owner. The young driver was so banged up from the incident – he was taken to hospital and intubated – that he was unable to answer questions from a police officer.

“You had a very serious accident,’’ Orr noted. “You are lucky to be here.’’ Orr informed Quinn he is fortunate to only be sentenced to three months in jail, to be served intermittently, but warned a further impaired driving conviction would be dealt with more severely.

Orr also sentenced Quinn to 30 days in jail for taking a vehicle without consent. The sentence will be served concurrently, so he will spend a total of 90 days in jail.

Quinn is prohibited from driving for two years and will be on probation for that period of time as well.

His conviction on taking a vehicle without consent also earned him 150 hours of community service and a $100 victim surcharge.

Quinn’s lawyer said the incident was a traumatic event for his client that served as a wake-up call.