Mother gets automatic jail for impaired driving

A Niverville woman who would not wait for her ride after police gave her a chance to call someone was led out of Steinbach court to jail after pleading guilty to driving with blood-alcohol over .08.

Candace Nykiforuk, 52, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 days custody and handed a two-year driving prohibition by Judge Tony Cellitti June 6.

The sentence was the minimum he could give her because of her previous impaired driving conviction from June 4, 2020 when she received a $1,200 fine and one-year driving prohibition. She had no other prior record.

RCMP were called to Nykiforuk’s daughter’s home in Steinbach by the daughter and her partner for a disturbance just before noon on Oct. 12, 2024. They told police Nykiforuk would not leave after driving to their home.

Nykiforuk called a friend to pick her up and police instructed her to wait for that friend before leaving the scene. She did not wait long.

Police were again called by the daughter at 12:45 p.m. who told them Nykiforuk left with her car.

Officers found her nearby in a parking lot. When they arrived, Nykiforuk got out of her vehicle and showed strong signs of impairment, according to an agreed to statement of facts read in court.

“When she’s advised she’s being placed under arrest for impaired operation, her response is ‘again,’” read Crown attorney Jennifer Neufeld in court.

Nykiforuk’s breath samples came back with readings nearly double the legal limit: .15 and .14.

Nykiforuk’s defence attorney told court she has joined Alcoholics Anonymous to defeat the chronic problem court heard she has suffered from for the last 10 years. Court was told it was a poor coping mechanism when she lost her husband to brain cancer after one year of marriage.

“I hope you’re able to get things under control,” were Judge Cellitti’s last words to Nykiforuk before the sheriff helped her up out of the witness chair and into custody.