Skip to main content

Criminal Code

s. 320.17 Flight from Peace Officer

Flight from peace officer

  • Impaired Driving & Transportation
  • Impaired Driving
Maximum sentence
10 years
Classification
Hybrid

Last verified: June 2026 · Source: laws-lois.justice.gc.ca

The law says

Criminal Code s. 320.17
Verify on justice.gc.ca(opens in a new tab)

Everyone commits an offence who operates a motor vehicle or vessel while being pursued by a peace officer and who fails, without reasonable excuse, to stop the motor vehicle or vessel as soon as is reasonable in the circumstances.

Amendment History (1)
  • 2018, c. 21, s. 15

Justice Laws is the authoritative version. If this copy and it ever differ, Justice Laws wins.

Immigration

Where this offence sits under IRPA

This offence is failing to stop a car or boat while police are chasing it. It is hybrid, with a top sentence of 10 years, and that makes a conviction serious criminality under IRPA s.36(1).

This is how the law sorts the offence, not a reading of any one record. An officer decides each case.

IRPA sections involved

Guides on offences like this one

No guide cites this section directly. These guides cite related offences.

Reckless Driving Conviction Entry to CanadaUS Misdemeanor Entry to CanadaCan You Enter Canada with a DUI?

Related sections

Criminal Code s. 320.13Dangerous OperationHybridCriminal Code s. 320.14Operation While ImpairedHybrid