Council Passes Tougher Reckless Driving Towing Policy

A tow truck hauls away a vehicle on N. Milwaukee St. in 2019. Photo by Jeramey Jannene.

The Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) will soon be able to seize the vehicles of every reckless driver it can catch.

The Milwaukee Common Council unanimously passed a long-awaited ordinance Tuesday that would allow MPD to tow and impound any vehicle used in reckless driving.

Ald. Lamont Westmoreland has been seeking the policy, which required a state law change, for more than two years.

“What we have right now is an ordinance with two glaring loopholes,” said Westmoreland, speaking to the Public Safety & Health Committee on Oct. 23.

In 2022, the city was allowed to impound vehicles driven recklessly if they were also unregistered. A 2023 change extended that to cases where the driver owned the vehicle and had an unpaid reckless driving citation.

The 2022 change yielded 595 tows through Feb. 11. The 2023 change added only 11 more.

Under the latest change, MPD can tow and impound any vehicle — regardless of vehicle ownership or the number of past offenses — if an officer issues a reckless driving citation.

The expansion is expected to yield a significant increase in the number of vehicles towed.

Assistant Police Chief Craig Sarnow told the public safety committee on Oct. 23 that 457 reckless driving citations, all of which would be tow eligible, had been issued in 2025.

To win state approval, Westmoreland and the city accepted a provision they didn’t request: officer discretion

“Too loose for me,” said Westmoreland on Oct. 23. He reiterated his opposition Tuesday.

Ald. Scott Spiker said at an Oct. 15 press conference that he didn’t expect the city to tow people with an ‘I Love Knitting’ bumper sticker.

The wide discretion prompted concern from Ald. Milele A. Coggs Tuesday.

Westmoreland and the city’s Legislative Reference Bureau quickly drafted an amendment inserting a clause that the enforcement of the ordinance be reviewed one year after its implementation.

A spokesperson for Mayor Cavalier Johnson said the mayor will sign the ordinance, but did not have a specific date.

Johnson has supported the policy change. In his first act in office he declared reckless driving a public safety crisis.

Sarnow previously said MPD is ready to act as soon as the policy becomes law.

State law defines reckless driving as the negligent operation of a vehicle that endangers the safety of the people or property.

Redeeming a vehicle requires the owner to pay $150 for the tow, a $25 per day storage fee, $50 if it is uninsured and any outstanding citations related to the towing. Parking services manager Peter Knox said data indicate more than 80 percent of those cited for reckless driving don’t have insurance.

There are protections for victims of theft. All fees are waived for vehicles that are reported stolen. “People keep talking about ‘this is going to hurt people that get their vehicle stolen.’ It is not,” Westmoreland said on Oct. 23.

The Wisconsin State Legislature passed the proposal on Oct. 14. Governor Tony Evers signed the policy, now known as Act 46, on Oct. 31.

Act 46’s leading proponent in the Capitol was Rep. Bob Donovan (R-Greenfield), a former Milwaukee alderman.

“Recent reports have shown that the overwhelming majority of police pursuits are, in part, due to reckless driving, putting everyone’s lives at risk,” said Donovan in a statement after Evers signed the legislation. “This legislation answers the calls from local leaders to get dangerous drivers off the streets immediately.”

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