Manitowoc County Sheriff Dan Hartwig
High-speed chases or pursuits have become an issue for law enforcement in Wisconsin, including those here in Manitowoc County.
Sheriff Dan Hartwig, during an appearance Monday on WOMT’s Be My Guest program, said “We had 4 such pursuits in the county during the past week and 3 of those motorists involved ran because of alcohol.”
He also noted another incident last Friday where an individual was driving at speeds of around 130 MPH.
“We terminated the pursuit,” he explained. “We got the license plate and other information and Sheboygan police obliged us by waiting outside the guy’s apartment when he returned home.”
The sheriff said another recent incident, locally, saw a motorist driving at very high, dangerous speeds where his deputies terminated the chase, and a few miles down the road the man “wrapped his vehicle around a tree.”
Hartwig did note that the driver did not die in that incident.
The Sheriff has a simple message for everyone this spring.
“If you’re going to be out enjoying the nice weather please do it responsibly, have a designated driver, do not get behind the wheel, and don’t try to run from law enforcement because you’re not only endangering my officers, you’re endangering the motoring public.”
Sheriff Hartwig closed by saying, “We want to keep our roadways safe, but also want people to make good decisions before they get behind the wheel.”
