Crime & Safety
Literally – These Multiple Offenders Had Too Much to Drink, Charges Say
A Tosa man is accused of driving drunk to get a late-night bite at George Webb, and another driver runs a red light and falls afoul of drunken driving laws on way to work – their 2nd and 3rd OWI charges, respectively.
Two men, arrested an hour and a half apart the same night and both in the Wauwatosa Village area, have been charged with driving while drunk.
One had been safely home but got hungry and couldn't resist getting in his car and slaloming toward an all-night diner, police reports said. He had already been convicted once of operating while intoxicated.
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The other, police said, ran a red light after drinking too much – on his way to work. He now faces his third OWI charge.
According to police reports and criminal complaints:
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Admittedly, literally, a stupid ... mistake
A 31-year-old Wauwatosa man is accused of driving drunk to an all-night diner, then crossing a center line in front of a Wauwatosa police officer.
Eric A. Sampson was charged in Milwaukee County Circuit Court with one count of second offense operating while intoxicated. If convicted, he faces up to six months in jail and $1,100 in fines.
According to the criminal complaint:
At 2:18 a.m. Oct. 20, a Wauwatosa police officer on patrol saw Sampson driving eastbound on West State Street near North 72nd Street, when he noticed Sampson’s car cross the double yellow line. The officer followed Sampson and pulled him over after he nearly reached his home in the 1200 block of North 68th Street.
Sampson’s license plates were expired, and he told the officer he knew that before driving. The officer told him about crossing the double yellow line and Sampson responded, “Well, I was…. Yeah.”
The officer noticed Sampson smelled of alcohol, and he admitted to drinking. The officer asked Sampon where he was coming from and he instead responded, “Literally… like… I’ve had too much to drink.”
Sampson then told the officer he had decided to get something to eat at George Webb in the Village after he had gotten home and he made a “stupid (expletive) mistake.”
He then failed field sobriety tests and tested a blood alcohol level of 0.15, nearly twice the legal limit to drive in Wisconsin.
Sampson was previously convicted of OWI in 2003.
Let's hope he wasn't going where we think he might have been
A 28-year-old West Bend man is accused of driving through Wauwatosa drunk while on his way to work.
Brian T. Birch was charged in Milwaukee County Circuit Court with one count of third-offense operating while intoxicated. If convicted, he faces up to one year in jail and $2,000 in fines.
According to the criminal complaint:
At 3:44 a.m., also on Oct. 20, a Wauwatosa police officer was on patrol near Harwood and Glenview avenues when he saw Birch run a flashing red light at the intersection. He pulled Birch over in the 1000 block of North 87th Street.
Birch said he simply wasn’t paying attention when he ran the flashing red light, but the officer noticed he smelled of alcohol. Birch said he was on his way to work, but had drunk three or four beers earlier in the night. He said he had stopped drinking around 1:30 a.m.
Birch failed field sobriety tests and a blood test later revealed a blood alcohol level of 0.166, which is more than twice the legal limit to drive in Wisconsin.
Reports did not say whether Birch had driven all the way from West Bend in his condition, or what sort of work he was planning to do, or where – but it is a fact that the 1000 block of North 87th Street is in the middle of the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center, and the street is hardly a shortcut to any other place of employment.
Birch was previously convicted of OWI in 2006 and 2007.