A sentencing judge must not rely on a blood alcohol reading taken outside the two-hour statutory period as the sole gauge of an offender's culpability for dangerous driving; the objective circumstances of the offending must be considered. The absence of factors indicating that an offender had 'abandoned responsibility for his or her own conduct' under the Whyte guideline does not mean a full-time custodial sentence can be avoided where the offence is otherwise serious. A suspended sentence will not adequately reflect the seriousness of the offence or the need for general deterrence where dangerous driving while significantly intoxicated causes grievous bodily harm of a very high order.
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