Longtime BU prof guilty of drunk driving

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This article was published 21/03/2014 (4188 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Brandon University Prof. John Blaikie made an appearance at the Brandon courthouse Thursday where he pleaded guilty to impaired driving and driving over .08.

Blaikie was charged in January, after he was allegedly pulled over returning from a conference in Regina with three students.

According to RCMP, the 66-year-old professor was pulled over by police shortly after 4 p.m. on Jan. 19 on the Trans-Canada Highway in the RM of Whitehead between Virden and Brandon.

RCMP say the “vehicle was being operated at a high rate of speed” and Blaikie showed signs of impairment.

RCMP also confirmed Blaikie was travelling with three other passengers, and was arrested for impaired operation of a motor vehicle and later provided breath samples above the legal limit.

Judge Donovan Dvorak said the case will be remanded until May 1, with a hearing to follow.

“The matter will be remanded for a period of time for you to go through with programming,” Dvorak told Blaikie. “You can come back and the court will be advised by evidence as to how things are going with you and how your prospects are.”

Blaikie is a longtime university professor most recently teaching 20th-century literature, science fiction and Shakespeare to first- and second-year students.

Brandon University would not comment on the status of Blaikie’s employment, however, it is believed that he has been on leave since January.

According to the university campus newspaper, The Quill, Blaikie will be retiring in August. There is also a job posting in the English department specifically asking for a candidate to teach Shakespeare and the literatures of the Renaissance through the 18th century.

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