MILWAUKEE — It was touted as a way to help make our streets safer. But a TMJ4 Lighthouse investigation found a new state law allowing law enforcement to tow the cars of repeat reckless drivers is rarely ever used.
The idea behind the law was to ensure those who continue to drive recklessly and neglect to pay their fines face an immediate consequence. Loopholes in the law are preventing it from having much of an impact.
Watch: Loopholes limit the effectiveness of repeat reckless driving towing law
"I got him doing 77,” an MPD officer said. “Jesus Christ. "The speed limit on this road is 35.”
Milwaukee police body and dash camera footage introduce us to Ahmir Butler, Tiffany Pirtle, and Kevin Lewis.
"The reason I stopped you is because you're going 72 in a 35 and driving reckless as hell,” an officer said during one of the stops. “No, I wasn’t,” Pirtle replied.
They’re three reckless drivers who keep getting caught by police. This time they were pulled over for speeds on main thoroughfares that should only be seen on the freeway.
"I was speeding but I was not reckless driving at all,” Butler told an officer.
All three learned neglecting their previous fines finally caught up to them.
"We're going to be towing your vehicle today,” an officer said.
“OK, why? Why is that?” Pirtle replied.
“Because the city changed the towing policy earlier last year,” the officer said.
“No!!” Pirtle replied.
"Towing my **** for what?” Butler said during his traffic stop.
Milwaukee started towing repeat reckless drivers in May of 2023.
"Watching that footage made me proud. I had a part in this,” Abbie Strong said.
Strong was one of the biggest advocates for the legislation that allowed it to happen.
"It's infuriating too because people should not be driving this way,” she said.
“When you see a driver going 77 in a 35 and getting so upset their car is getting towed, what goes through your mind?” TMJ4 reporter Ben Jordan asked.
"I immediately go back to Oct. 12, 2022, when my husband Aaron Strong was hit by a reckless driver going over 70 miles per hour right by the courthouse in a 25 to 35 m.p.h. zone,” Strong said. “I lived that. That recklessness is something I carry with me every day of my life. And it's heartbreaking and it's infuriating."
What was celebrated as a guaranteed consequence for reckless drivers who continue to put others in danger has yet to come with results Strong anticipated.
"I am disappointed,” Strong said. "I can't say that this is the effective law we were hoping and praying for."
The latest data MPD has provided to TMJ4 shows these are the only three reckless drivers to have their cars towed in Milwaukee under the repeat reckless driving policy.
"I wish that the loopholes could be closed,” Strong said.
Strong is talking about two loopholes in particular.
First, the vehicle has to be owned by the reckless driver. They get a pass if it’s someone else’s vehicle.
Second is the difficulty for police to figure out whether the repeat reckless driver has outstanding fines.
"I wish we could have better information for our officers,” Strong said.
In body camera footage footage from a few months ago, an MPD officer needed help to figure out how to find out if the driver has previous reckless driving fines that haven’t been paid.
"You go to the homepage, city of Milwaukee municipal court,” a police supervisor explained to the officer.
Another driver also needed assistance.
"You can search it one of three ways,” a police supervisor told the officer. “The three ways I know are the case, court case number, by the citation number, or by the person.”
Strong learned the problem for officers across the state is that information isn’t provided in the DOT citation database they’re able to pull up on their squad computer after pulling someone over. It’s kept separately by municipal courts.
State representative Bob Donovan wrote the bill.
"It's sort of mind-boggling to me,” he said.
He didn’t learn about the main flaw in the law that makes it difficult for officers to enforce until months after it went into effect.
“You know of the two loopholes. Do you have any intention to try to close them?” Jordan asked.
“Oh, without a doubt,” Donovan replied. "I believe if you're engaging in reckless driving, we need to tow your vehicle period. Whether it's a first offense or not."
Donovan says the soonest that could happen would be next year when the legislature reconvenes. He’s also unsure whether enough lawmakers would support it.
"But it was interesting to me if those three officers got the information or those vehicles were pulled over. Why not more?” Donovan questioned.
Donovan says one solution wouldn’t require updating the law. He’s calling on police departments to form a better partnership with municipal courts to make sure important information is shared, or have police supervisors do the digging.
"Can there just be someone back at the station, perhaps an officer who's on modified duty that can access this stuff very quickly for them and get it done?” Donovan said. “Whichever way they do it, if it's a priority to this department I believe it would have gotten done."
Donovan says he wants to see more lessons learned like Lewis said he did, the hard way.
"You ain't going to catch me doing this **** no more,” Lewis said.
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