EAU CLAIRE — An Eleva man charged with his seventh OWI was in court Tuesday for a hearing in the case.
Robert Smith, 54, faces charges of OWI-7 and driving with a prohibited alcohol concentration, seventh offense. The charges were filed in December.
According to the criminal complaint, a state trooper was approached at a gas station by someone who was concerned about Smith’s behavior. The trooper used his vehicle to box Smith in and spoke to him. Smith was off balance and, when asked for his license, handed over a debit or credit card.
Smith said he had called his wife and told her he couldn’t drive. While talking with the trooper he stopped to take a call on his cell phone from his wife.
Smith failed field sobriety tests and blew a .278 on a breath test, almost three-and-a-half times the legal limit. A subsequent blood draw showed a level of .262. Under Wisconsin law anyone with three OWI convictions has a limit of .02.
A seventh OWI is a Class F felony, with the potential for up to 12.5 years in prison. Fines can reach $25,000.
Smith has not yet entered a plea.
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