Tory hopeful got pardon for impaired driving
Warren Steinley, Conservative Party candidate for Regina— Lewvan, confirmed Thursday that he previously received a pardon for an impaired driving conviction.
In a written statement provided by the federal Conservatives, Steinley acknowledged the past offence.
“Almost 20 years ago when I was 19 years old I made a mistake,” he said.
“I took responsibility for my actions, paid the consequences, and received a pardon. Since this mistake, I have moved on with my life, started a family, spent 8 years as a MLA, and given back to the community I hope to represent. The fact is that drunk driving in Saskatchewan is far too prevalent and action must be taken to stop the people of this province from driving while impaired.”
Steinley was not among then-candidates whose names were provided in the run-up to the 2016 provincial election, when the Saskatchewan Party and Saskatchewan NDP publicly disclosed five candidates — three from the Saskatchewan Party and two with the Saskatchewan NDP — had past convictions for impaired driving.
At the time, Steinley was the Regina—walsh Acres incumbent.
Public disclosure of the names followed a request from the Saskatoon Starphoenix for all parties to provide a list of candidates with criminal records, along with their policies on candidates with criminal records.
Saskatchewan Party executive director Patrick Bundrock said on Thursday that Steinley disclosed to the party back in 2015 — when he filed his candidate papers — that he had both a past conviction and a subsequent pardon for drinking and driving.
Bundrock said Steinley wasn’t included in the party’s 2016 public disclosure because he had no criminal record at that point.
“We made a decision to disclose the candidates who had a criminal record,” Bundrock said. “But Mr. Steinley received a pardon. He had no criminal record. So that’s why he was not included in our group, and also because he provided the party at the time of his filing with a criminal record check that showed no criminal record ... We believe that we disclosed what we were asked. We disclosed those candidates who had a conviction for drinking and driving on their record.”
Bundrock said Steinley was “very open and honest” when he shared his past conviction, given it wasn’t present during his criminal record check.
The three Sask. Party candidates included now-premier Scott Moe — convicted in 1992 — Eric Olauson and Terry Dennis. The Saskatchewan Party said Moe, Olauson and Dennis disclosed their convictions to the party before becoming candidates.
At the time, then-sask. Party leader Brad Wall said the party considered impaired driving “very serious” but that a conviction shouldn’t exclude someone from being a candidate.
“We make a decision on a caseby-base basis about what the person’s done to turn things around, how they’ve contributed since,” he said. “And, in these three instances, we’re more than comfortable — more than comfortable — having them as candidates and want them to be MLAS.”
NDP candidates who self-reported prior to running in 2016 included Dwayne Lasas and Lyle Whitefish.
According to the federal government’s website, record suspensions — colloquially known as pardons — allow people who have been convicted of an offence, served their sentence and demonstrated they are law-abiding citizens to “have their criminal record kept separate and apart from other criminal records.”
Pardons for summary offences — under which impaired driving offences most often fall — require an applicant to have completed serving a sentence and paying off fines. Once all of that is completed, the individual has to wait five years to apply (10 in cases of more serious indictable offences).
“A record suspension removes a person’s criminal record from the Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) database,” the site reads. “This means that a search of CPIC will not show that the individual has a criminal record or a record suspension.”
Record suspensions are intended to help individuals access employment and educational opportunities and to reintegrate into society. They can only be granted by the Parole Board of Canada.
The site points out record suspensions don’t erase a convicted offence but rather sets it aside. A pardon can be revoked if an individual is convicted of a new offence, found to no longer be of good conduct, or found to have made a false or misleading statement or have hidden information when applying.