May 21, 2020 – Washington Co., WI – A 41-year-old Milwaukee man who was arrested twice within a 24-hour period by Washington County Sheriff’s Deputies last week was formally charged in Washington County Circuit Court today.
On May 14 at approximately 10 p.m. the Washington County Sheriff’s Office received several 911 calls reporting a car traveling 30 mph in a 70-mph zone and was driving all over the road on I41 in the Town of Addison.
It is always particularly concerning when we receive multiple 911 calls about someone’s erratic driving. Deputies quickly responded and stopped the car. The driver was given field sobriety tests and arrested for OWI 3rd offense. The suspect was believed to be impaired on illegal drugs.
On May 15 the suspect posted bond and was released from the jail. At around 3:30 p.m. the Washington County Sheriff’s Office received another 911 call reporting the same vehicle was driving 80 mph in a 55-mph zone and driving all over the roadway.
The vehicle was located by a Washington County Deputy on CTH H in the Town of Kewaskum where he was stopped on the roadway blocking both lanes of traffic. The driver was once again found to be under the influence of narcotics and arrested for OWI 3rd offense.
He was booked into the Washington County Jail where he again posted bond and was released.
The man will appear in Washington County Circuit OWI Court later today to face these charges. This special court occurs once a week and was established several years ago in Washington County to ensure that multiple offense OWI offenders would be seen in court for their initial appearance within a week of their arrest. This allows the court to set bond and establish any bail restrictions. If convicted, one of the 3rd offenses will be changed to a 4th offense, which is a felony in the State of Wisconsin.
Washington County Sheriff Martin Schulteis said, “It is terrifying knowing there are individuals out there who simply do not get it. This case is an example of someone who has no regard for the safety of others and needs to be held accountable to society for their complete inability to function within our community. Our goal at the sheriff’s office is to reduce victimization and enhance the quality of life for our citizens which is best accomplished through community partnerships. In this case, numerous people called 911 to report this dangerous driving and possibly saved lives in the process.”