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Man, 20, convicted of impaired driving after crash zaps power to Sarnia neighbourhood

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A young Sarnia man was convicted Tuesday of impaired driving in connection to a crash last fall that Sarnia police said sent sparks flying from fallen hydro wires and caused a power outage.

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Andrew Croteau, who represented himself in court, told the judge he was “completely OK” with the punishment – a $1,600 fine and one-year driving ban – suggested by the Crown.

“Just glad nobody got hurt,” he said.

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Justice Krista Lynn Leszczynski agreed.

“As you’ve acknowledged, you’re very lucky that you didn’t hurt yourself or get killed as a result of a collision while you were impaired or that you didn’t hurt or kill someone else,” she said before imposing the penalties.

The incident took place around 7:45 p.m. on Nov. 25 – three days before Croteau’s 20th birthday. The court heard he was driving a black Chevrolet pickup truck that Wednesday night on Lakeshore Road near Modeland Road when he lost control after going through an S-bend. The pickup spun sideways and struck the pole before coming to rest against some trees in the front yard of a nearby home.

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Police on scene could smell alcohol on Croteau’s breath and he showed signs of being impaired. He failed a roadside breath test and was arrested. More tests at Sarnia police headquarters showed he had between 110 and 120 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood, more than the legal limit of 80.

“The facts could have been far more aggravating, and fortunately they’re not,” assistant Crown attorney Suzanne LaSha said, “but the (signs) detected by the officer on the scene were fairly severe.”

Sarnia police said at the time the incident dislodged the hydro pole and sparks were seen coming from the lines.

“This in turn caused a power outage in the area,” police said in a statement.

Police also said there were two other passengers in the pickup – who both avoided serious injury – but this was not heard in court.

A second related charge police laid was withdrawn after his conviction.

@ObserverTerry

tbridge@postmedia.com

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