A former Quebec provincial police officer has been sentenced to 18 months in jail for impaired driving causing bodily harm after a 2011 collision on Highway 50.

Stéphane Hamel was arrested on Nov. 10, 2011 after a two-vehicle crash. Police said the car the officer was driving swerved from the left lane and collided with a car in the right lane just after midnight.

Firefighters needed the Jaws of Life to rescue the female driver of the other car who was taken to hospital with serious injuries.

The officer's car, an unmarked police vehicle, ended up in a ditch.

Gatineau police then administered a breathalyzer test before arresting him.

At the Gatineau courthouse Friday, judge Valmont Beaulieu placed considerable emphasis on deterrence and the need to denounce the behaviour in handing down the sentence.

When his sentence wraps up, Hamel will also be prohibited from driving a vehicle for 15 months.

The severity of the sentence was a surprise to defence counsel, which proposed the former officer serve 90 days, to be served on 45 weekends.