MADISON (WKOW) -
People busted for a third OWI could soon become felons in Wisconsin.
That is if the State Legislature signs off on a new Assembly bill aimed at deterring drunk driving.
The Assembly Committee on Transportation heard testimony on this bill Tuesday.
Some of it was very powerful.
You could have heard a pin drop as Paul Jenkins described what happened to his daughter on April 25, 2008.
"She was rear-ended by Mark Benson, killing immediately our daughter Jennifer and her unborn child," said Jenkins. "Courtney, her ten-year-old daughter, died the next day."
Mark Benson was a repeat offender.
"Two days before killing Jen and the children and injuring two others, he pled guilty to his third offense for OWI," Jenkins told the Committee.
The bill was authored by Rep. Jim Ott (R-Mequon).
"This bill is an attempt to address this problem by increasing the third conviction for OWI to a felony," said Rep. Ott.
There is currently no mandatory felony OWI's until a fifth offense, or a fourth offense if it comes within five years of the third.
Rep. Ott said that is not enough of a deterrent.
"Make them think, after two convictions, you do one more and you're convicted, you're a felon," said Rep. Ott.
But the one concern some of the legislators on the committee have is cost.
"What you're doing now is, you're gonna have people be felons and that's gonna take manpower and that's gonna take a lot of things that a lot of District Attorney's don't have right now," said Rep. Andy Jorgensen (D-Fort Atkinson).
"You can't even put a dollar figure on the cost of life and limb, and families losing income," Rep. Ott replied to the questions about cost.
Jenkins told the Committee that it's time the Legislature accepts responsibility for Wisconsin's hundreds of OWI-related deaths each year.
"The 'sin' in Wisconsin is frankly a State Legislature that ignores all the expert advice on how to dramatically curb drugged and drunk driving," said Jenkins.
An inspector from the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office told the Committee that if this bill becomes law, he would expect to see a 30 percent decrease in drunk driving arrests in the first year.
The Transportation Committee would have to bring this to a vote in the next few weeks to get it on the Assembly calendar for the last part of the spring session in March.
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MADISON (WKOW) -- A bill focused on charging third-time drunk driving offenders with a felony is up for a public hearing in the Assembly Committee on Transportation Tuesday morning.
Currently, there is no mandatory felony for Operating While Intoxicated until a fifth offense in Wisconsin.
There is a felony for fourth-time offenders, but only when it comes less than five years after a third offense.
Rep. Jim Ott (R-Mequon) authored the bill and said in press release: "The goal is not to put more people in jail, but to provided a deterrent for those who insist on getting behind the wheel while intoxicated."
Capitol Bureau Chief Greg Neumann is at the public hearing and will have live reports on 27 News at 5 and 6.
