Repeat drunk drivers: "Five Strikes and You're Out"
By Kris Schuller | kris.schuller@wearegreenbay.com
Two state lawmakers from Northeast Wisconsin are going after repeat drunk drivers. And their bipartisan bill "5 Strikes and You're Out" appears to have enough support to become a law.
It is a public safety issue Rep. Eric Genrich (D-Green Bay) and Rep. Andre Jacque (R-De Pere) feel can no longer be ignored. The repeat drunk drivers who are putting lives at risk - yet facing little in the way of penalties.
"We see it far too often," said Rep. Jacque.
"People are reading in the paper of five, six, seven OWI offenses," said Rep. Genrich.
Drivers like Jason Welty of Oshkosh who over the course of 16 years was convicted 10 times for drunk driving. Causing Winnebago County District Attorney Christian Gossett in 2011 to express his frustration.
"Wisconsin is more of a joke on drunk driving," Gossett said about the state's OWI laws.
But perhaps that is changing with a bill co-sponsored by Representatives Genrich and Jacque, which says after five OWI offenses a driver loses their license for a minimum of a decade.
"Once you hit five times - it means you've been driving drunk habitually," said Jacque.
"It's our response to say enough is enough - driving is not a right, it is a privilege," said Genrich. "If you prove you can't act responsibly on the roads you don't deserve the privilege any longer."
How many possible drivers could this impact? WisDOT records show in 2012 over 8,000 people had five OWI convictions.