Wisconsin Habitual Traffic Offender Laws
The state of Wisconsin does have a habitual traffic offender law. Through the Department of Transportation and law enforcement efforts, drivers' offenses are tracked and evaluated to determine if they pose consistent or habitual threats on the roads. Offenses that can count toward evaluation under the habitual traffic offender law include drunk driving charges, moving violations, and even infractions that occur out of state.
Generally, 12 convictions on moving violation charges or four convictions on major violations will result in a person losing his license under this law. Major violations under the state's habitual traffic offender law include, but are not limited to, operating while intoxicated, refusing breath tests, vehicular homicides, and involvement in a hit and run accident.
What Happens to Drivers Who Are Habitual Offenders?
License revocation under the law lasts for five years and occurs automatically upon the terminal conviction. License revocation under this law does not take the place of penalties a driver may incur for the convictions that underlie the application of the habitual traffic offender statute. That means that a person will lose his license under the habitual offender law and also have to deal with the fines, jail time, and other penalties associated with the other crimes he has been convicted of committing.
As drunk driving charges can count as major violations of the state's habitual traffic offender law, it can be in a driver's best interest to take the defense of such charges seriously. The accumulation of drunk driving convictions on a person's record can trigger the application of this additional penalty and the potential for a person to lose his license for five years. Individuals who have concerns about their drunk driving charges and the potential for the state's habitual traffic offender law to apply to their cases may contact drunk driving defense attorneys to learn more.