Not a line on your paper · the question every paper raises
First offence: what the law sets.
Charged is not convicted. This page covers what Ontario sets only if a first offence case ends in a conviction: the ignition interlock that comes with the licence when it returns. Know how it works before your first court date. It is what the law sets, not what will happen in your case.
Before anything else · what "first offence" means here
Three words decide what applies.
Only after a finding of guilt.
Nothing below follows from a charge alone.
No earlier conviction of this kind.
Whether yours counts as a first offence is a question for the lawyer.
The floor the law sets.
The lowest the law allows. Not a prediction, not a price list.
That is what s. 320.19(1) of the Criminal Code says, and it is all this page says. The Code's maximums are higher than its minimums. Where a case lands is never something a web page can tell you. It's a question for the call.
Count your daysThe car. Impounded at the roadside. The registered owner collects it after day 7 and pays the tow and storage.
The licence. Suspended by the police, not a court, starting the same night.
The court date. The criminal case starts here, at the courthouse on line 3.
Many people look this up before their first court date, with nothing decided yet.
After a conviction · driving again
The interlock is part of the road back.
The 90-day roadside suspension already started and is separate: 90-day licence suspension.
- The Criminal Code.For a first offence, a person can enter a provincial ignition interlock program after any waiting period the court sets; the law requires none (s. 320.24(10)).
- Earlier, in some cases.Ontario's Reduced Suspension with Ignition Interlock Conduct Review Program: in some cases, installing an interlock early can reduce the suspension (ontario.ca). Whether it fits you is a question for the call.
Every charge has its own page
Find your own line.
All your papers: What did they hand you?
About a first offence
Asked about a first offence.
Is a first offence a criminal record?
A conviction is a criminal record. A charge is not a conviction. Nothing on this page applies unless the case ends in a conviction.
Does the 90-day roadside suspension count toward this?
They are separate. The 90 days started at the roadside and run whatever the court decides. What this page covers only applies if there is a conviction.
Talk it through
Talk through your paper.
Say which section number is on the paper and which courthouse. No need to explain what happened.