An Osoyoos man that drove an ATV down Main Street in 2018 was ordered to pay a fine in Penticton court last week. (File photo)
By Dale Boyd
Osoyoos Times
An Osoyoos man received a $100 fine after what Crown counsel described as a “bizarre” police chase involving an all-terrain vehicle driving on sidewalks down Main Street in Osoyoos.
The 36-year-old man, who the Osoyoos Times has decided not to name, was likely suffering a schizophrenic episode, a condition he was unaware of until the incident on Aug. 5, 2018.
He pleaded guilty to one count of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle in provincial court in Penticton Friday, April 12.
Police saw the man driving down the sidewalk heading east on Main Street without a helmet, where Crown counsel Ann Lerchs noted there were “dozens of families and small children.”
The man, who has no prior criminal record, sped away from police above 50 km/h passing vehicles on double-yellow lines and on the shoulder of Hwy 3. Police stopped pursuing and the man was later arrested at his residence.
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Lerchs sought a $1,000 fine and a driving prohibition, while defence counsel Nelson Selamaj argued for a conditional discharge to spare his client a criminal record, noting a schizophrenia diagnosis after the incident may explain the behaviour which he said was “completely out of character.”
Selamaj said his client “doesn’t have a clear recollection,” of the chase with police, and the man and his family were unaware of his schizophrenia, which he is now receiving treatment for. The man’s family noted he had been acting strangely prior to the incident as well, Selamaj said.
“I think the mental health situation explains it all,” said Judge Gregory Koturbash prior to sentencing the man to a $100 fine and a 90-day driving prohibition.
“That’s taking into account much of this was motivated by the mental health situation.”
