Charges facing Elite Driver Training School owner in Fort St. John reduced

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A Fort St. John driving school owner is now facing lesser charges after accusations of criminal harassment were dropped.

According to the Court Services Online, David Lorne Rowsell now faces three counts of fear of injury or damage to person or property.

Instead of a criminal trial, a peace bond hearing will occur before the court, according to the BC Prosecution Service. 

The Government of Canada says a peace bond is used where an individual appears likely to commit a criminal offence but there are no reasonable grounds to believe an offence has been committed.

BC Prosecution Service said Rowsell was initially charged with a single count of criminal harassment involving two complainants on January 3rd, 2025. A second count of criminal harassment was added due to a third complainant on February 6th, 2025. 

The peace bonds now involve the same three complainants. 

This comes after ICBC issued 39 tickets to Rowsell due to multiple alleged violations of the Motor Vehicle Act regulations. 

Rowsell, a former driving examiner for ICBC, accused the corporation of corruption and irregularities within its driver training system in Fort St. John. 

Rowsell, who owns Elite Driver Training School, told Energeticcity.ca: “The criminal harassment charges that were originally laid and now the peace bond charges are all in retaliation to me speaking up against the corruption that I report to ICBC. 

“I’m innocent of [the] criminal harassment charges and [the] peace bonds, because I’m contesting [them].

“This is a bizarre case and bizarre charges for reporting corruption to ICBC.” 

Also, ICBC suspended all driving tests in Fort St. John indefinitely due to a criminal investigation involving harassment in early December. 

Greg Harper, media relations advisor for ICBC, told Energeticcity.ca: “We are working closely with local law enforcement regarding the matter that has temporarily paused road testing in the Fort St. John community. 

“At the same time, we are actively exploring options to safely resume road tests in the Fort St. John area.”

In the meantime, ICBC has expanded its road test availability in Dawson Creek.

“Our driver licensing team targets at least 15 per cent appointment availability within 60 days and Dawson Creek is currently well above that target with 77 per cent availability over the next 60 days,” shared Harper, adding ICBC is working to restore service soon. 

He said: “We will update the community immediately once road testing can restart. 

“The safety of our employees and customers is our top priority, and we are required to ensure a safe environment for everyone accessing ICBC services.” 

As per BC Prosecution Service, Rowsell’s next appearance to consult legal counsel is on January 15th, 2026.