Tosa Man Charged with 4th OWI in 5 Years, a Felony

Among three recent drunken driving arrests, all the same day, one stood out as a Wauwatosa man received his fourth OWI charge in less than five years, making it a felony count.

Perry Perez, 51, was charged Saturday in Milwaukee County Circuit Court. If convicted, he could face up to six years in prison.

According to police reports:

At 6:47 p.m. Thursday, a caller reported Perez driving dangerously and heading north on 68th Street from State Street. The caller gave police a license number and officers went directly to Perez’s address in the 1200 block of North 68th.

They spotted his vehicle out front, then saw Perez lying on the front stoop of his home. Officers helped him inside and questioned him, noting a strong odor of alcohol. He said he was just coming from Applebee’s, where he had drunk a few cocktails.

Perez was unable to complete sobriety tests and was taken to Wisconsin Heart Hospital for a blood draw. Police found that he had three prior convictions for operating while intoxicated, the most recent in 2010 and all with the past five years.

The witness who called police said she had followed Perez through Miller Valley on State Street and had seen him repeatedly veer across the center line, then swerve into a lane divider, and finally veer entirely into the oncoming traffic lane.

Two women receive first-offense tickets

At 11:20 p.m. Thursday, a 37-year-old Wauwatosa woman was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, first offense, after she was seen driving without her headlights on North Avenue at 68th Street.

The woman smelled of drink and her speech was slurred, so the officer asked her to take field sobriety tests. She at first agreed but eventually became angry and refused to complete some of the steps.

She blew a .17 blood alcohol concentration on a breath test.

At 10:28 a.m., a 45-year-old Milwaukee woman was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving, first offense, after she was stopped for speeding in the 9700 block of West Capitol Drive.

She was clocked at 55 miles per hour in a 35-mph zone. She smelled of alcohol but claimed she hadn’t had any that morning, saying she had been partying the night before.

It must have been a long party. She failed sobriety tests and blew a .172 BAC.