Saturday, May 18, 2013
The National Transportation Safety Board wants another lowering of the blood-alcohol standard for drunk driving. It stands at .08; the NTSB wants it at .05.
The National Transportation Safety Board wants the blood-alcohol threshold for drunk driving to be lowered to .05 from .08. Wisconsin followed the rest of the country from a .10 to .08 standard in 2003, under the threat of losing federal highway funds. The state had almost 29,000 DUI arrests in 2011, almost 10,000 fewer than in 2000 but still the sixth-highest per-capita amount in the country. And police regularly arrest people for driving with concentrations two and three times the current legal limit, and/or for multiple convictions. Will a lower limit make Wisconsin citizens safer in any way? Or is it simply an unnecessary government intrusion? Vote in our poll and comment below. Related polls:
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Luckily, a Brookfield Police officer is near at hand when a caller reports a driver who was a clear threat to himself and others.
A Waukesha man was arrested for his third OWI offense after a frightened caller alerted Brookfield Police to his uneven driving. According to Brookfield police: At 9:11 p.m. March 22, the 35-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, third offense, after an anxious caller told police he was speeding, swerving wildly and repeatedly cutting off other drivers. She reported him southbound on North 124th Street at West Capitol Drive. Fortunately, a Brookfield patrol officer was not far away and spotted the suspect's car just as he passed Burleigh Street. The officer said the man "accelerated rapidly" away from the intersection and both he and the suspect hit 70 mph in the 35-mph zone before he pulled him over south of North …
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Sunday's St. Patrick's Day is among the biggest binge drinking events of the year in Wisconsin. Is it the biggest?
Almost any national ranking of alcohol consumption finds Wisconsin near the top. Forbes Magazine named Milwaukee “America’s Drunkest City” in 2006. A story from 24/7 Wall St. ranked the state No. 6 among beer-drinking states in 2011, citing statistics that say Wisconsin has more binge drinkers and heavy drinkers than any other. And at least one study suggests Wisconsin has the most drunk drivers in the nation. In a state that loves to find an excuse to lift a glass, which special event inspires the most drinking to excess? Vote in our poll and discuss the issue in our Comment stream.
Friday, February 15, 2013
Rachel Pecor, strategist for Jeanne Tarantino, was arrested in Pewaukee, whose police chief, Ed Baumann, is one of Tarantino's opponents.
This story was updated at 3:14 p.m. with comments from Jeanne Tarantino's campaign. Rachel Pecor, former campaign strategist for 98th State Assembly candidate Jeanne Tarantino, was arrested for her second OWI on Tuesday in the Village of Pewaukee as she was on her way to pick up Tarantino's daughter from dance class. Pecor was pulled over at Main Street and Prospect Avenue after she veered into the wrong lane while crossing the center line, according to a police report. She failed a field sobriety test and a breath test, registering a .20 blood-alcohol level, more than twice the legal limit. Tarantino has since removed Pecor from her campaign with just three full days remaining until election day. Tarantino confirmed Pecor's status with …
Friday, January 25, 2013
A Sussex man allegedly argued face to face in the streets with another driver in Waukesha, and could pay heavily for drinking the night prior.
A night of drinking came back to haunt a Sussex man, who police say was involved in a fit of road rage in Waukesha that led to his fifth OWI charge. Eric R. Schmidt, 33, of Sussex, was charged Thursday with disorderly conduct and a fifth offense for operating with a prohibited alcohol concentration, which is a felony. He faces up to $11,000 and six years imprisonment for the offenses. According to the criminal complaint: At roughly 2:40 p.m. Wednesday, a member of the Waukesha Fire Department called police while in traffic on the Moreland Boulevard bridge in Waukesha. The firefighter said he witnessed Schmidt and another driver standing face to face in the roadway yelling and pushing each other. He radioed in a call to police after the …
Sunday, December 9, 2012
An Oak Creek man arrested for drunk driving last week has six prior convictions, but only one since 1996. How much should that time span factor into what punishment he faces now, if at all?
Should the time between drunk driving arrests have an impact on how those people are handled in the courts? An Oak Creek man was arrested for operating while intoxicated last week near Mitchell International Airport. The 51-year-old man has six prior convictions, but only one in the last 16 years. If a person’s second OWI comes at least 10 years after the first, then it is generally treated like a “first offense” in Wisconsin. But if it happens a third time — no matter when any of them occurred — then the person is considered to have two first-offense convictions and a third-offense conviction. In the case of the Oak Creek man, he was given a two-year prison sentence for his sixth offense, in 2002, but it was “stayed,” essentially turning …
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Police arrest Waukesha man for his third operating while under the influence charge after he's pulled over near his parent's home in Muskego
- POLICE & FIRE
- Joe Petrie
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Wednesday, November 14, 2012
A 33-year-old Waukesha man is accused of driving under the influence of drugs with his 2-year-old daughter in the back seat of his car. Michael J. Ward was charged in Waukesha County Circuit Court Monday with one count of third offense operating while intoxicated. If convicted, he faces up to two years in prison. According to the criminal complaint: At 5:30 p.m. Saturday, a person called 911 after he spotted a Cadillac Seville driving erratically westbound on Janesville Road and he thought the driver may be drunk. The caller followed the Cadillac as it turned onto Kristen Drive, then Canfield Drive and finally onto Castle Glen Court. A Muskego police officer arrived and found the Cadillac driving slowly around a cul-de-sac. The car was …
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Suspect had booze, beer and drugs in his car when he's pulled over on Main Street Saturday, according to a criminal complaint.
A 50-year-old Waukesha man is facing charges after he allegedly drove drunk with booze and cocaine in his car Saturday night. Roy E. Martinez was charged in Waukesha County Circuit Court on Tuesday with one count of possession of cocaine and one count of second offense operating while intoxicated. If convicted, he faces up to 18 months in prison and $6,000 in fines. According to the criminal complaint: At 1:05 a.m. Saturday, a Waukesha police officer spotted Martinez driving westbound on Main Street near Caroline Street with no tail lights lit on the car. The officer pulled him over and noticed he appeared intoxicated. Martinez said he was coming from a local bar and the officer spotted a small bottle of Korbel brandy in the center console…
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Suspect admits to taking drugs before driving; officers find heroin in his wallet, according to criminal complaint.
A 25-year-old Waukesha man is facing drug charges after he crashed his pickup truck into a median wall on I-94 in Milwaukee this month. Lucas L. Schumacher was charged in Milwaukee County Circuit Court on June 22 with one count of possession of a narcotic drug. If convicted, he faces up to 3 ½ years in prison and $10,000 in fines. According to the criminal complaint: Milwaukee County sheriff’s deputies were called to I-94 westbound near North 35th Street after Schumacher crashed his truck into the median wall. He was unconscious when officers arrived, but was eventually woken up by the deputies. Schumacher had a hard time remaining awake and was placed under arrest for operating while intoxicated. He told the deputies he had taken Valium …
Monday, June 18, 2012
He's now facing up to six months in prison and $1,100 in fines if convicted of his second OWI. He told police he'd only had four or five beers, but those were enough to help him fail his field sobriety tests.
A 33-year-old Waukesha man is facing his second round of drunk driving charges after he was caught traveling through Fox Point. Jason E. Des Jardins was charged in Milwaukee County Circuit Court Friday with one count of second offense operating while intoxicated and one count of operating a motor vehicle with a prohibited alcohol concentration. If convicted, he faces up to six months in prison and $1,100 in fines. According to the criminal complaint: On May 22, a Fox Point police officer was on patrol in the 7900 block of North Port Washington Road when he saw Des Jardins travelling southbound. The officer discovered Des Jardins had a suspended drivers license and pulled him over. Des Jardins smelled of alcohol and told the officer he …
$$andSense
9:14 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013
@me Let us just agree that there may be a little more accountability for every law introduced in the future. Hmmm? more ›