A 25-year-old woman faces multiple charges after an Ontario Provincial Police roadside spotcheck in northwestern Ontario found a toddler not in a car seat and cannabis accessible to the driver.
The traffic stop occurred around 4 p.m. on Canada Day on Sandy Beach Road in Dryden. Officers discovered the woman only had a G1 licence and was driving without a qualified accompanying driver – a breach of provincial licencing rules.
A two-year-old child in the vehicle was not in a car seat, police said.
“The OPP reminds all motorists that responsibility behind the wheel includes protecting your passengers – especially the smallest ones,” OPP Const. Chris Chevrier said in a social media post on Tuesday.
The driver was charged under the Highway Traffic Act for driving unaccompanied as a G1 licence holder, carrying a front-seat passenger and failing to secure a child properly. An additional charge under the Cannabis Control Act was laid for having cannabis readily accessible while driving.
The vehicle was not impounded, but police waited for the registered owner to arrive with a car seat for the child and to assume driving duties.
“Our priority was ensuring the toddler’s safety,” Chevrier told CTV News in an email Thursday evening, noting the child was released to appropriate care.
OPP are reminding the public that RIDE programs aim to enforce road safety laws to protect everyone – including vulnerable passengers.
