MILWAUKEE — State surveillance video shows not just one, but two Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) squad cars struck on the interstate in a matter of minutes, injuring a deputy.
TMJ4's Bruce Harrison sat down for an interview with MCSO Inspector Douglas Holton who says the job for deputies appears to be getting more dangerous amid rising OWIs and reckless driving.
"The video provides a whole different level of shock," said Holton.
Early Monday morning, state surveillance video shows a car on I-43 near Keefe slamming into a sheriff's SUV. Holton said that the driver blew a .309, almost four times the legal limit.
Minutes later, as deputies arrest the man, a second driver hits another squad car, which knocks into a deputy, injuring him.
"Is it getting more dangerous out there for your colleagues?" Harrison asked.
"I believe so, yeah," Holton says. "When we see an elevated number of OWIs and incidents like this, especially on our late shift right around bar time, it is dangerous. It really is."
There have been 319 OWIs through April this year, according to the MCSO. That's up from 227 at this point last year, data shows.
And as of this week, according to the sheriff's office data, drivers have struck 11 county squad cars. Last year's total for the entire year was just 15, according to data.
"We know coming in there is a risk, but we're willing to take that risk," Holton said. "But every crash on the freeway can be avoided. We don't call them accidents, we call them crashes because somebody is responsible for it."
Holton says drivers are responsible whether that is choosing to drive drunk or looking at their smartphone while behind the wheel.
"Leave earlier. Put the phone down. It's common courtesy," he said. "Keep us all safe. We have a Zero Vision in this state of trying to get the deaths to zero and that is on the public. It's not necessarily on the county sheriff's office."
Holton said the injured officer will be okay and it could have been much worse. The squads can be replaced, he said, but not their deputies.
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