From now on, reckless drivers in West Allis could face up to a $10,000 fine
Bob DohrThe City of West Allis will be making a concerted effort to crack down on reckless driving in 2022, but those pulled over for driving dangerously won't automatically face a $10,000 fine, police say.
The reckless driving deterrence campaign, crafted by city administrators, City Attorney Kail Decker and the West Allis Police Department, was approved Nov. 16 as part of the city's 2022 budget.
Part of the initiative involves charging reckless driving offenders under a different area of the Wisconsin state statutes, using a law against "negligent operation of a vehicle" instead of reckless driving.
While the reckless driving charge carries a maximum fine of $200, a motorist convicted of negligent operation of a vehicle could face a forfeiture of up to $10,000.
Opinion:Milwaukee's streets simply aren't safe. The city needs a stronger response to reckless driving.
Decker said the Class A misdemeanor and its higher forfeitures have been adopted by the city for a long time but haven't been used in this way before.
"By doing so, it creates an increased penalty for reckless driving with an intent of deterring it," Decker said in a news release.
Charging motorists with the higher-forfeiture negligent operation of a vehicle is now on the table, but officers pulling over people who are driving dangerously will have discretion on what type of citation they issue, West Allis Deputy Chief of Police Chris Marks said.
The issuance of a reckless driving citation will continue to be an option while also incorporating the negligent operation of a vehicle "in circumstances where the operator displayed a high degree of negligence," Marks said in an email.
In 2019 and 2020, West Allis police issued a total of 16 citations specifically for reckless driving, Marks said.
In addition, he said there were a significant number of other tickets issued in that time frame that caused or had the potential to cause crashes or other dangerous situations.
He did not have information readily available on how many of the fines were paid.
West Allis will install traffic cameras at several intersections
In addition to the Police Department's focus on reckless driving enforcement, which will be done with existing patrols, the city will spend $25,000 on higher resolution cameras that will be placed at several intersections around the city, West Allis Mayor Dan Devine said.
Marks said he didn't yet have information on the number of traffic cameras to be installed or where they'll be located.
"The city does have some cameras currently in use, but we are exploring options that will improve our ability to identify offending vehicles," Marks said.
Decker said the city is also exploring adding another tool in its fight against reckless driving: dashcams.
Decker said catching someone for reckless driving can be difficult, and with more and more people choosing to put dashcams on their vehicles, he said the next phase of the campaign could involve people submitting personal dashcam video to police to help them in their investigation.
Reckless driving is a problem all across the city, mayor says
Devine said he's heard from lots of residents about reckless driving in West Allis and has seen it for himself.
"I have been receiving a lot of complaints about reckless driving from just about every part of the city," Devine said previously. "I have also seen it myself way too frequently while out in the community. It is not only on highways but is on side streets, too."
Will the deterrence campaign work?
Marks thinks so.
"We believe that this initiative will result in a reduction of reckless drivers in West Allis and we will continue to allocate resources and implement strategies to prevent this dangerous behavior," he said.
The crackdown on reckless driving is one of several quality-of-life issues included in the new budget.
Others include increasing funding for nuisance animal control, installing solar lights in select areas to increase safety, changing an ordinance so there would be city garbage carts on all residential properties and establishing a pilot program to see what effects snowstorms have on garbage and recycling collection.
Contact Bob Dohr at 262-361-9140 or bob.dohr@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @BobDohr1.
