Drunk Drivers Score Between .10 and .26

Two of three people arrested by Brookfield police for drunken driving are facing charges of a second offense, and one of those drivers had a blood alcohol concentration of .26, 3½ times the proscribed limit.

According to police reports:

At 8:06 p.m. Feb. 8, a 55-year-old New Berlin man was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, first offense, after police were called to Outback Steakhouse, 1260 S. Moorland Rd., about a highly intoxicated customer who had tried to get in his car to leave.

Restaurant taff begging him not to drive, but before police could arrive, he did get in his car and drive off. Officers spotted him on West Greenfield Avenue, caught up and pulled him over near Davidson Road.

Besides the evidence of numerous frantic witnesses, officers noted man's bloodshot, glassy eyes, the strong odor of alcohol and his slurred speech. He failed sobriety tests and blew a .14 BAC.

Going low and slow draws attention

At 12:03 a.m. Feb. 9, a 28-year-old Waukesha man was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, second offense, after he was reported stopped still in the right turn lane on West Capitol Drive at North Calhoun Road.

The man drove off just before a patrol officer arrived, but she spotted him almost immediately. The officer said the suspect's car was riding very low, and when she ran the plates, they came back suspended. The man was driving 10 mph under the speed limit, yet he was unable to maintain his lane.

The moment he was pulled over, the driver lit up a cigarette and started puffing heavily, which the officer believed was to disguise odor of alcohol. His speech was slow and slurred, but he claimed he'd had nothing to drink all night.

Notwithstanding that claim, he failed sobriety tests and blew a .10 BAC. The officer learned from records that the suspect was in violation of an absolute sobriety order through the Department of Corrections-Probation and Parole.

Unable to stand up, and no wonder

At 6:08 p.m. Feb. 10, a 57-year-old Brown Deer man was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, second offense, after a caller reported him driving recklessly near Calhoun Road and North Avenue.

The witness kept following and said the suspect was speeding, crossing the center line, speeding up and slowing down for no reason, and made a really wide turn onto Calhoun. 

An officer spotted him shortly and pulled him over on Calhoun just south of Burleigh Street.

The driver demonstrated the usual signs of glassy eyes and slurred speech and was asked to perform sobriety tests. He was given a failing grade when he couldn't stand up without leaning on his car. He blew a whopping .26 BAC.