A number of proposals are alive in Madison to crack down on drunken driving in Wisconsin. But a bill being circulated for co-sponsors right now is the one that takes the most important step - it makes a first-time drunken driving offense a crime rather than just a traffic violation.
The bill is being pushed by Democratic Rep. Peggy Krusick of Milwaukee, Republican Rep. Jim Ott of Mequon and Republican Sen. Alberta Darling of River Hills. They say it was crafted following almost a year of meetings with a variety of people, including police and victims.
Frankly, it's an embarrassment that a drunken driving offense isn't even considered a crime in Wisconsin. The first offense is treated just like a speeding or seat belt offense. That contributes to a permissive culture in Wisconsin that has landed the state with the highest rates in the nation for alcohol consumption, binge drinking and heavy drinking. It has the highest alcohol use in the country among high school students. And drunk driving fatalities are increasing in Wisconsin while they're dropping nationwide.
Not only would the bill being proposed criminalize all first-time operating while intoxicated (OWI) offenses, but it also would legalize roadside checkpoints to find drunken drivers.
Meanwhile, in the Legislature, a number of measures heading toward passage will help combat the culture. The Assembly recently passed a bill that criminalizes first-offense OWIs if there are children present in the vehicle. It also mandates ignition interlock devices for first-time offenders with a 0.15 blood-alcohol count and for all repeat offenders. And it makes fourth-offense OWIs a class H felony, if it occurs within five years of a previous conviction.
All of these are tough, necessary steps. But nothing will carry the weight that making any and every drunken driving conviction a crime will. That is the best and biggest step the state Legislature can take toward reversing the deadly culture of drunken driving in Wisconsin.
The bill being proposed should be supported, passed and signed by the governor.
The bill is being pushed by Democratic Rep. Peggy Krusick of Milwaukee, Republican Rep. Jim Ott of Mequon and Republican Sen. Alberta Darling of River Hills. They say it was crafted following almost a year of meetings with a variety of people, including police and victims.
Frankly, it's an embarrassment that a drunken driving offense isn't even considered a crime in Wisconsin. The first offense is treated just like a speeding or seat belt offense. That contributes to a permissive culture in Wisconsin that has landed the state with the highest rates in the nation for alcohol consumption, binge drinking and heavy drinking. It has the highest alcohol use in the country among high school students. And drunk driving fatalities are increasing in Wisconsin while they're dropping nationwide.
Not only would the bill being proposed criminalize all first-time operating while intoxicated (OWI) offenses, but it also would legalize roadside checkpoints to find drunken drivers.
Meanwhile, in the Legislature, a number of measures heading toward passage will help combat the culture. The Assembly recently passed a bill that criminalizes first-offense OWIs if there are children present in the vehicle. It also mandates ignition interlock devices for first-time offenders with a 0.15 blood-alcohol count and for all repeat offenders. And it makes fourth-offense OWIs a class H felony, if it occurs within five years of a previous conviction.
All of these are tough, necessary steps. But nothing will carry the weight that making any and every drunken driving conviction a crime will. That is the best and biggest step the state Legislature can take toward reversing the deadly culture of drunken driving in Wisconsin.
The bill being proposed should be supported, passed and signed by the governor.
