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Yet another alleged drunk driver could walk because police ignored the man’s problem understanding English when he was explained his legal rights.

This is the second such case that has come to light in the last few weeks in Brampton, and follows on the heels of many more similar cases in other parts of the GTA. You have to wonder what will it take to ensure police don’t jeopardize their own arrests by breaching the Charter.

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“Language rights, rights to counsel, none of this stuff is new, it’s been around for 35 years,” says an exasperated defence lawyer who asked that his name not be used. “Yet police can’t seem to get it right — either due to a lack of training or a lack of regard for their constitutional obligations.”

And as a result, the guilty are set free.

In this latest incident, it was the judge himself — and not a defence lawyer — who raised the language concern after hearing evidence at the man’s trial.