MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee city tow lot has seen 268 cars come through since May 1, 2022, due to a reckless driving tow policy enacted by the Fire and Police Commission (FPC).
"We hope people are seeing these things are actually happening. They see they're getting towed," said Alderwoman Marina Dimitijevic. She is on the Public Health and Safety Committee and heard a one-year report from Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) and Alderman Michael Murphy.
"We don't want your car. We just want you to drive normally. Follow the rules of the road and the law. That's all we're asking for," Murphy said.
According to data shared by MPD at the committee meeting, of the 268 drivers that have had their cars towed in the last year, Murphy said 16% got at least one citation after the tow.
He also pointed out that those numbers are far better than in instances when a reckless driver is just given a ticket.
"83% of them don't pay," Murphy said of people who are cited for reckless driving. "Which is a pretty scary statistic that those citations get thrown in the back seat. It really defeats the purpose of enforcement and when people feel there's no accountability when it relates to reckless driving and paying their tickets."
MPD also shared that in 51% of the cars that were towed, the driver at the time was not the owner of the vehicle.
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