OWI Sentencing Guidelines in Dane County, Wisconsin

This guide offers important sentencing guidelines for Operating While Intoxicated (OWI) citations issued on or after July 3, 2018 in Wisconsin's Fifth Judicial District. This includes the city of Madison and Dane County as well as Rock, Green, Lafayette, Columbia, and Sauk counties. (Columbia and Sauk counties were formerly in the 6th district.)

For a full list of OWI sentencing guidelines throughout Wisconsin, see our post here.

This information is up-to-date at the time of this posting, but subsequent updates may have been made since then or may be made in the future. This information is taken directly from the Wisconsin Court System's official PDF guide, which can be viewed and downloaded here.

If you or someone you know is facing OWI charges in Wisconsin, contact Stangl Law to request a free consultation immediately.

(Note: The tables below may appear cut-off on mobile devices from Google Search listings. If you're encountering this problem, please use this link to view the full post.

Aggravated vs. Non-Aggravated OWI

Before we get any further, it's important to understand there are several factors determining what makes an OWI aggravated vs not aggravated (non-aggravated factors are also referred to as mitigating factors). Exact distinctions differ by county, but there are generalities to be aware of:

• If you are driving without a license or proof of insurance, this could elevate your offense to an aggravated OWI.
  
  
• If there was an injury of any sort stemming from your OWI, the charge could then become aggravated.
  
  
• All fines, jail time, and other revocations are doubled when a minor (someone under the age of 16) is in the vehicle at the time of the offense.
  
  
• If the OWI is a repeat offense, the current OWI might become an aggravated offense.
  
  
• A third OWI offense is elevated to a felony and your fourth offense is automatically a felony charge.
  
  

First Offense OWI

Penalty Range

Fine/Costs

$150-$300 Forfeiture [346.65(2)(am)1.]

Alcohol Assessment & Driver Safety Plan

Court Shall Order

Community service for defendant unable to pay the fine [346.65(2g)(ag)]

Court May Order

• Safety plan to include the effect on victim or victim’s family [343.30(1q)(c)]
• Community service work that demonstrates adverse effects of substance abuse or OWI to reduce the amount of forfeiture or fine [346.65(2g)(a)]
• Site visit that demonstrates the effects of substance abuse [346.65(2i)]
• Reduction of the forfeiture/fine and payment of the difference toward the cost of the alcohol assessment and driver safety plan [346.65(2e)]
• Restitution [346.65(2r)(a)]
  
  Note: Ignition interlock (IID) restriction only applies if the PAC is equal to or greater than .15.

Second Offense OWI or First Offense With Minor As a Passenger

Penalty Range

• 5 days to 6 months jail [346.65(2)(am)2.]
• If probation, maximum term is 2 years, with minimum 5 days conditional jail [973.09(2)(a)1.d.]
• Maximum changes to 7 days when defendant enrolls in approved treatment court program [346.65(2)(bm)]
• Conditional jail must include good time [973.09(1)(d)]

$350-$1100 Fine [346.65(2)(am)2.]

• 12-18 months [343.30(1q)(b)3.]
• 45 day waiting period for occupational license, 1 year wait if 2 OWIs in 5 years [343.30(1q)(b)3.]

Passenger Under 16

Minimum and maximum fines, jail and length of revocation all double [346.65(2)(f)2.],[343.305(10)(b)4m.]

Refusal

2 year revocation and 90 day waiting period for occupation license, unless 2nd offense in 5 years, then waiting period is 1 year [343.305(10)(b)3.]

If no refusal hearing is requested, revocation period begins 30 days after the date of refusal. If a hearing is requested, revocation begins 30 days after the date of refusal or immediately upon a final determination that the refusal was improper, whichever is later [343.305(10)(a)]

Alcohol Assessment & Driver Safety Plan

• Community service for defendant unable to pay the fine [346.65(2g)(ag)
• Ignition interlock device for not less than 1 year nor more than 18 months [343.301(1g))
  
  

Court May Order

• Safety plan to include the effect on victim or victim’s family [343.30(1q)(c)]
• Community service work that demonstrates adverse effects of substance abuse or OWI to reduce the amount of forfeiture or fine [346.65(2g)(a)]
• Site visit that demonstrates the effects of substance abuse [346.65(2i)]
• Reduction of the forfeiture/fine and payment of the difference toward the cost of the alcohol assessment and driver safety plan [346.65(2e)]
• Restitution [346.65(2r)(a)]

Third Offense OWI 

Penalty Range

Jail

• 45 days to 12 months jail [346.65(2)(am)3.]
  If probation, maximum term is 2 years, with minimum 45 days conditional jail [973.09(2)(a)1.d.]

• Minimum changes to 14 days when defendant enrolls in approved treatment court program [346.65(2)(cm)]

• Conditional jail must include good time [973.09(1)(d)]

Fine/Costs

• $600-$2000 Fine [346.65(2)(am)3.]

Revocation

• 24-36 months [343.30(1q)(b)4.]

• 90 day waiting period for occupational license, 1 year wait if 2 OWIs in 5 years [343.30(1q)(b)4.]

Passenger Under 16

Felony conviction, minimum and maximum fines, jail and length of revocation all double [346.65(2)(f)2.],[343.305(10)(b)4m.]

Refusal

• 3 year revocation and 120 day waiting period for occupation license, unless 2nd offense in 5 years, then waiting period is 1 year [343.305(10)(b)4.]
  
  
• If no refusal hearing is requested, revocation period begins 30 days after the date of refusal. If a hearing is requested, revocation begins 30 days after the date of refusal or immediately upon a final determination that the refusal was improper, whichever is later [343.305(10)(a)]
  
  

Alcohol Assessment & Driver Safety Plan

Court Shall Order:

• Community service for defendant unable to pay the fine [346.65(2g)(ag)
  
  

• Ignition interlock device for not less than 1 year nor more than 36 months [343.301(1g)(b)]

Court May Order:

• Safety plan to include effect on victim or victim’s family [343.30(1q)(c)]
  
  
• Community service work that demonstrates adverse effects of substance abuse or OWI to reduce the amount of forfeiture or fine [346.65(2g)(a)]
  
  
• Site visit that demonstrates the effects of substance abuse [346.65(2i)]
  
  
• Reduction of the forfeiture/fine and payment of the difference toward the cost of the alcohol assessment and driver safety plan [346.54(2r)(a)]
  
  
• Restitution [346.65(2r)(a)]
  
  
• Seizure and forfeiture of motor vehicle owned and used by the defendant, unless the court orders interlock or immobilization, or unless seizure results in undue hardship or endangers health and safety [346.65(6)(a)]

Note:
If PAC
≥ .17, then minimum and maximum fines double
If PAC ≥
.20, then minimum and maximum fines triple
If PAC ≥
.25, minimum and maximum fines quadruple [346.65(2)(g)]
This may be incongruent with the above table, in certain situations

OWI 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th

Read our other posts to learn more about general penalties for OWIs after 3rd:

• 4th Offense OWI in Wisconsin: Felony & Lifetime Revocation
• Understanding Wisconsin's New Penalties for 5th and 6th Offense OWI
• 7th Offense, 8th Offense and 9th Offense OWI in Wisconsin: How to Defend Your Case

For commercial and municipal OWI sentencing guidelines, get the full guide here or read our other article, Wisconsin Drunk Driving Laws and CDL.

Read on:

• What to Do if Your Teen is Arrested for OWI in Wisconsin
• 5 Ways You Might Incur Extra Penalties for OWI-Related Incidents
• Defending a Wisconsin OWI Case: You Have Options
  
  

Free Wisconsin OWI Defense Consultation

Nationally-recognized OWI Defense Attorney Patrick J. Stangl has over 32 years of experience protecting the rights of clients accused of OWI across Wisconsin.

If you're facing OWI charges in Wisconsin, including drug charges or repeat OWI charges, click below to request a FREE 10-minute consultation to discuss your drunk driving or driving under the influence case and help explore options for your defense.

Two OWI Defense Success Stories

State of Wisconsin v. R.T.

The client was charged with an OWI 5^th offense, a felony, with a high alcohol concentration. He had a number of prior convictions from Minnesota, where he did not have a lawyer. If convicted he would likely have received a prison sentence. 

As a result of a very thorough factual and legal investigation, Attorney Stangl was able to establish that in four of the prior convictions his client was not properly advised of his right to appointed counsel and how an attorney may have been able to assist him in those cases, thus establishing that the prior convictions violated his client's constitutional rights under the Sixth Amendment. The State conceded that four of the prior criminal OWI convictions could not be counted against Attorney Stangl's client and the case was amended from a criminal conviction OWI 5th offense to an OWI 1st offense, a non-criminal ordinance violation, thus saving his client from a lengthy jail or prison sentence and another OWI conviction.  

Victory - OWI Accident in Madison, Wisconsin

Attorney Stangl represented a client who had a vehicle accident in the City of Madison and registered a breath alcohol concentration of .14. Luckily no one was hurt but his client was subsequently charged with what is commonly called “drunk driving” but technically an OWI/PAC as a first offense in the State of Wisconsin, §346.63 (1) (a) and §346.63 (1) (b) Wis. Stats. It appeared the City had a strong case and his client was willing to put the matter behind him, however Attorney Stangl continued to research and investigate the matter. Ultimately he was able to discover that the arresting officer failed to comply with certain technical requirements of the law regarding the reading of the Informing the Accused which are rights that a suspected drunk driver must be informed of prior to the submission of any chemical test of their blood, breath or urine. Ultimately the case was successfully resolved and the OWI was amended to reckless driving and the PAC (above the legal limit charge) was dismissed.

FREE 10-Minute Consultation

Wisconsin Criminal Defense Attorney Pat Stangl has been successfully defending clients against OWI, DUI, BAC, PAC and other intoxicated and drunk driving charges since 1991. If you are facing OWI charges in Wisconsin, Attorney Stangl will provide for you at no obligation, a FREE 10-minute consultation to discuss the charges you're facing and explore your options for defense. Simply click the link below to get started today.

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