An evening of drinks with friends became a nightmare for Marshall Craig Budau, who consumed so much that he assaulted his ex-girlfriend, drove into a parked SUV, and barely remembered any of it.
Police were called to a residence on the 900 block of Brown Street around 7 p.m. on Aug. 18 for a physical altercation, and upon arrival, they found a grey Toyota truck that had backed into a parked SUV, Crown prosecutor Rob Parker explained in Moose Jaw Provincial Court on Nov. 9.
Officers found Budau, 50, standing outside in a heavily intoxicated state, while they saw blood on his mouth, evidence of the physical altercation.
After speaking with witnesses, police confirmed that he had come to the residence partially intoxicated and was told to leave, which he attempted to do, Parker said. Budau’s ex-girlfriend went after him and tried to grab the keys, but he pushed her to the ground and grabbed her by the hair.
“He did show signs of impairment by the officers, including difficulty speaking in complete sentences, slurred speech, glassy eyes and the odour of beverage alcohol,” the Crown prosecutor continued.
Police later took breath samples from Budau, with the readings showing his blood alcohol content (BAC) levels were both .220, nearly three times the legal limit.
Parker urged Judge Brian Hendrickson to fine Budau $2,500 for the impaired driving incident — normally $2,000 — because of his high BAC levels and previous driving convictions, and six months of probation with conditions to follow for the assault.
After pleading guilty to the over .08 charge and assault charge, Budau told the judge he didn’t remember much of that night because of how intoxicated he was.
“It was a bad mistake on my part,” he said, noting he was there to drink with friends. He explained that he lost his job over this because it was a work vehicle that was involved. So, he wanted a lower fine and a longer time to pay.
“Up till then, I had been doing my best. I was proud that I had a good driving record on my licence. Unfortunately, I made a mistake, which I have been regretting ever since,” Budau added.
The main aggravating factor is Budau’s “extremely high” BAC readings, which caused him to be a risk to not only himself but other road users, said Judge Hendrickson. What’s also detrimental is that he couldn’t recall much of what happened.
The other troublesome issue is that Budau has a criminal record — the most recent offence was in 2010 — with a charge of having a BAC over .08, the judge continued. However, the mitigating factors include his dated criminal record, his early guilty plea and the fact he is unemployed.
After considering the situation, Judge Hendrickson imposed a fine of $2,200 on Budau and a one-year driving prohibition, while he waived the victim surcharge and gave the man nine months to pay the fine.
