The Highway Traffic Amendment Act (Stalking-Related Measures)
Chamber
manitoba
Stage
Introduced
This Manitoba bill adds driver's licence suspensions, vehicle seizures, and forfeiture for people who use a vehicle to commit criminal harassment (stalking).
Key Changes
- Creates automatic driver's licence suspensions for people convicted of criminal harassment committed using a vehicle (6 months for first offence, 1 year for second, lifetime for third or more within 10 years)
- Requires police officers to seize and impound a vehicle they discover being used to commit criminal harassment
- Sets a 30-day impoundment period for a first vehicle seizure related to criminal harassment
- Sets a 90-day impoundment period if the vehicle owner had a prior seizure for criminal harassment within the last 10 years
- Allows a vehicle to be permanently forfeited to the government if the offender has committed two or more prior criminal harassment offences using a vehicle within 10 years
- Allows a justice to authorize police to enter a building to seize a vehicle connected to criminal harassment
Gotchas
- The bill only applies when a motor vehicle is used in the commission of criminal harassment — it does not apply to stalking that occurs without a vehicle
- A vehicle owner has a defence against impoundment if they could not reasonably have known the driver would use the vehicle to commit criminal harassment, protecting innocent owners
- The lifetime driving ban applies based on prior convictions, not just prior charges or allegations
- A transition clause means the new licence suspension rules do not apply retroactively — they only count offences committed after the law comes into force
- The bill comes into force 90 days after royal assent, giving time for implementation
Who's Affected
- People convicted of criminal harassment (stalking) who used a vehicle in the offence
- Victims of stalking, who gain additional legal protections
- Vehicle owners whose cars are used by someone else to commit criminal harassment
- Police officers, who gain new mandatory seizure powers
- Manitoba courts and justices, who handle new forfeiture and seizure applications
Vibes
0 responses
Gotchas
- The bill only applies when a motor vehicle is used in the commission of criminal harassment — it does not apply to stalking that occurs without a vehicle
- A vehicle owner has a defence against impoundment if they could not reasonably have known the driver would use the vehicle to commit criminal harassment, protecting innocent owners
- The lifetime driving ban applies based on prior convictions, not just prior charges or allegations
- A transition clause means the new licence suspension rules do not apply retroactively — they only count offences committed after the law comes into force
- The bill comes into force 90 days after royal assent, giving time for implementation
Summary
This bill changes Manitoba's Highway Traffic Act to create new consequences for people convicted of criminal harassment (stalking) when they use a motor vehicle to commit the offence. It introduces automatic driver's licence suspensions that get longer with each repeat offence, ranging from six months for a first offence up to a lifetime ban for a third or subsequent offence within ten years. The bill also gives police officers the power to immediately seize and impound a vehicle being used to commit criminal harassment. A vehicle can be impounded for 30 days for a first offence, and 90 days if the owner has had a vehicle seized for the same reason within the past ten years. For the most serious repeat offenders — those who have committed two or more prior criminal harassment offences using a vehicle within ten years — the vehicle used in a new offence can be permanently forfeited to the government. The bill was introduced to strengthen protections for stalking victims by removing a key tool stalkers often use: their vehicle.
Automatically generated from bill text using Claude
Vibes
0 responses