KENOSHA COUNTY — Wisconsin State Patrol is urging people to slow down on highways after a trooper caught a driver going 134 miles per hour.
The consequences of speeding tickets in Wisconsin pale in comparison to the punishment in Illinois.
If Wisconsin State Patrol catches a driver exceeding speeds of 25 m.p.h. over the limit, the driver is hit with a traffic citation. The same violation in the state to the south is considered a crime.
Last week, TMJ4 showed viewers exclusive dash camera video of an Illinois driver getting busted by Wisconsin State Patrol for going triple digits through Kenosha County in the rain.
The driver was sent on his way with a handful of tickets, including a $326 fine for speeding.
“You’ve gotta slow down. I know I hammered you with tickets,” the trooper told the driver. “102 in the rain is reckless driving, man.”
If the driver was caught going 32 m.p.h. over the limit in his home state, he could have been arrested.
“I have made several arrests over my career for aggravated speeding,” said Trooper Melissa Albert-Lopez.
Albert-Lopez is a state trooper in Illinois, a state that has some of the toughest speeding laws.
“There’s no reason to speed at these crazy levels,” she said.
Going 26 to 34 m.p.h. over the speed limit in Illinois is called ‘aggravated speeding’. The misdemeanor offense is punishable by up to 6 months in jail and a fine of up to $1,500. Speeding at least 35 over the limit in Illinois can land the driver in jail for up to a year.
“Do you think Illinois’ harsher penalties deter that behavior?” TMJ4 reporter Ben Jordan asked.
“Some people really do respond to the concept that what they’re doing is a crime and that is a great deterrent,” Trooper Albert-Lopez replied. “They pay their fines, possible jail time or community service and they learn and they move on.”
Illinois State Police data suggests it may be making a difference. About 2,000 fewer drivers were charged with ‘aggravated speeding’ in 2022 compared to 2019.
During that same time frame, excessive speeding violations on Wisconsin highways went in the opposite direction. Wisconsin State Patrol data shows the amount of drivers caught going more than 100 m.p.h. nearly doubled.
“I don't think there's any question that speeds have certainly risen,” said Wisconsin State Patrol Master Trooper Brendan Braun.
Master Trooper Braun has spent more than two decades patrolling Wisconsin freeways for traffic violations.
“Do you think policy should shift to put more pressure on drivers not to behave that way?” Jordan asked.
“I don’t see the need for more incarceration,” Master Trooper Braun replied. “The mandatory suspension that we have now really hits a driver’s license. It’s going to make your insurance go up, it’s a six-point violation so it’s a pretty heavy violation. But I don’t think arresting someone for a speeding violation personally would make much of a difference at all.”
While traffic laws and penalties greatly vary depending on which side of the state line you’re driving, Trooper Braun and Trooper Albert-Lopez say their primary goal is the same. They hope to educate people on far worse consequences including the possibility of injuring or killing someone.
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