MADD P.E.I. chapter ex-head Dave Griffin gets 5 days in jail for drunk driving

The former president of a MADD chapter in P.E.I. and onetime Summerside deputy police chief has been sentenced to five days in jail after pleading guilty this morning to impaired driving.

At a hearing Thursday morning in P.E.I. provincial court, Dave Griffin was also fined $1,300 and given a one-year driving prohibition by Judge Jeff Lantz.

Griffin was charged July 31 after he was found with a blood alcohol level twice above the legal limit on June 5.

Griffin was East Prince MADD chapter's president at the time of the incident, and later resigned.

In the agreed statement of facts read in court, Griffin showed signs of impairment after being pulled over by Summerside police. The vehicle was stopped after police received a complaint from the public.

Griffin 'remorseful'

In court, Griffin's lawyer, David Hammond, said his client was "embarrassed and remorseful."

Hammond said Griffin had a distinguished career with the police force, but the last decade before his retirement in 2011 was a struggle for him and his family.

During that time, Griffin was found guilty of insubordination and charged with sexual harassment.

While the harassment charges were later dropped, Griffin took the City of Summerside to court.

In 2006, the P.E.I. Supreme Court ruled the chief of police at the time, Georges Arsenault, had "intentionally misused his office" to allow charges to go ahead.

Hammond told the court the legal battles took a toll on Griffin and "sent him a downward spiral" that ultimately led to problems with drinking and the impaired driving incident.

The court heard Griffin has made efforts to get sober.

He retired from the Summerside police force in 2011 after 40 years of service.