A 40-year-old woman pleaded guilty May 27 to refusing to provide a breath sample for alcohol testing and driving without a valid driver’s licence.
In Prince George provincial court, Judge Charles Hutchinson agreed with Crown and defence lawyers that Natasha Lynn Paul should be fined $2,000 on the refusal charge, payable within two years, banned from driving for one year and placed on probation for one year.
She had originally been charged with driving while prohibited but pleaded guilty to the lesser included offence of driving without a licence. Hutchinson fined her $500 and imposed a one-year driving ban on that charge.
On July 12, 2025, a witness reported Paul driving on the wrong side of the road. Her vehicle, a 2021 blue Honda Civic, had front-end damage. The witness said he stopped to check on Paul and believed she was either impaired or in medical distress, so he called police.
An officer pulled her over without incident. Paul fumbled with her wallet and provided photo identification after first handing the officer her bank card. Her speech was slurred and her eyes were watery. She registered a fail on a roadside screening device and was taken to the detachment for further testing.
Paul tried nine times to provide a breath sample before the officer arrested her for refusal.
On Oct. 9, 2025, an officer saw Paul driving the same vehicle in downtown Prince George and noticed the licence plate was hanging by one screw. The officer confirmed the vehicle was registered to Paul, who was prohibited from driving under the Motor Vehicle Act.
Paul identified herself and admitted she did not have a valid licence.
She was arrested without incident and released at the scene on an undertaking.
Hutchinson said the admission of guilt was a significant mitigating factor that saved court time. Paul had a limited record of driving violations and no prior Criminal Code convictions for driving offences. Paul, who is Indigenous, suffered childhood trauma after being taken from her alcoholic parents to live with her aunt.
She obtained a health-care assistant certificate from Thompson Rivers University in 2019 and worked for three years in home support as a community health-care worker. She also obtained a Class 1 licence and drove truck for companies based in Prince George but struggled after her aunt died. In 2025, she attended residential treatment in Abbotsford but left after less than a month to care for her ill mother.
Hutchinson suggested Paul take advantage of counselling while on probation.
“It’s clear that Miss Paul is somebody who has, in the past, been able to overcome some struggles and has the potential to do so in the future,” Hutchinson said.
