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Committee discusses adopting state towing authority for reckless driving; action postponed
Summary
City staff presented a memo recommending adoption of a state law authorizing immediate towing and impoundment for reckless driving. Committee members raised questions about severity, impound logistics and cost recovery and asked staff to return with PD input and the memo author for a decision at the next meeting.
City staff briefed the Waukesha City Ordinance and Licensing Committee on a state law that would allow local authorities to tow and impound vehicles involved in reckless driving incidents, but the committee postponed any decision and requested further information.
Brian, a city staff member who prepared a memorandum (with assistance from Michael Radovich), said his office’s final recommendation is to “go ahead and adopt the state statute pretty much as is,” but he cautioned that not all stakeholders (including the city administrator and possibly the mayor) had provided final comments and that the item was not ready for action that evening.
Why it matters: the state statute provides a new enforcement tool that could allow immediate towing and impoundment of vehicles when officers determine reckless driving has occurred. Committee members raised concerns about the severity of immediate impoundment, where to store towed vehicles, statutory limits on altering timeframes for unclaimed vehicles, and the potential cost burden on the city or vehicle owners.
Members questioned enforcement practice and data needs. Alicia asked whether vehicles in OWI stops are typically impounded; Brian said drivers are generally not allowed to drive home in those cases but that impoundment practices vary. Alicia also asked whether the city could recoup towing costs if a towed vehicle is later identified as stolen; Brian said the tow operator typically requires payment before release and that restitution is ordered by courts but often difficult to collect.
Steve suggested aligning statutory timeframes (the draft references 60 days for stolen vehicles and 90 days for disposition after impoundment); Brian said the ability to vary those numbers depends on how closely the city must follow the state statute. Committee members asked the city to bring Michael Radovich, the memo author, and a police department representative to the next meeting so members can ask detailed questions and review local citation data. The chair and members agreed to hold the item over to the committee’s next meeting for further consideration.
Next steps: staff will invite Michael Radovich and a police representative to the next meeting, provide citation data on reckless-driving incidents as requested, and return with clarifications on whether the municipality can vary statutory timeframes.
No ordinance was adopted at the Feb. 23 meeting.
