Four drivers charged with stunt driving over five days

Officers have charged four people with stunt driving over the last five days, Kingston Police announced on Thursday, Jun. 8, 2023.

A person can be charged with stunt driving when driving 40 km/h or more over the speed limit on roads with a limit less than 80 km/h, or driving 50 km/h or more over the speed limit when the limit is 80 km/h or more.

In a media release, Kingston Police said that two drivers were stopped on Bath Road on Saturday, Jun. 3, 2023, one travelling 106 km/h in a 50 km/h zone, and the second driving 99 km/h in a posted 50 km/h zone.

The following day, Sunday, Jun. 4, 2023, a driver was charged after police clocked them travelling 95 km/h in a 50 km/h zone on the Waaban Crossing, according to police.

On Wednesday, Jun. 7, 2023, a fourth driver was pulled over and charged with stunt driving after travelling 121 km/h in a 60 km/h zone on Perth Road.

“No matter how good a driver may be, the laws of physics remain the same. Speeding will increase stopping distance, reduce field of vision, and make it harder to react in time to changing conditions or unexpected actions by other road users,” Kingston Police stated. “And with these excessive speeds, the risk of serious injury or death becomes far greater.”

Beyond the serious risks, police noted that an immediate 30-day driver’s licence suspension and an immediate 14-day vehicle impoundment at the roadside (whether it is your vehicle or not) are just the beginning of severe consequences. Persons charged with stunt driving will also face:

• a minimum fine of $2,000 and a maximum fine of $10,000
• a jail term of up to six months
• a post-conviction licence suspension of:
  • a minimum of one year and a maximum of three years for the first conviction
  • a minimum of three years and a maximum of 10 years for a second conviction
  • a lifetime suspension, reducible after 10 years under certain criteria, for a third conviction
  • a lifetime suspension, non-reducible, for a fourth and subsequent convictions
• six demerit points
• a mandatory driver improvement course, upon conviction
• Other penalties
  • Drivers convicted of stunt driving will experience a substantial increase in their insurance rates or could become uninsurable.