Crime & Safety

Man With Open Beer Cans in Car Faces 6th OWI Charge

Rafael Garay, 27, of Milwaukee, reportedly hit the median wall on I-43 near 60th Street, causing major front and rear end damage to the vehicle.

A Milwaukee man faces charges for his fifth — or possibly his sixth — drunk-driving offense after an early morning freeway accident Tuesday.

A Milwaukee County sheriff’s deputy patrolling on the freeway came upon a one-car crash on westbound I-43 just east of 60th Street at approximately 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The driver, Rafael Garay, 27, allegedly hit the median wall causing major front and rear end damage to the vehicle, according to the sheriff's department.

The deputy found Garay on the floor of the vehicle and open beer cans in the back seat. A Greenfield Fire Department medical unit transported him to Froedtert Hospital for minor injuries.  

Garay faces charges of a fifth-offense operating while intoxicated, which will become a sixth offense if he’s convicted of the pending charge from April of this year. Fifth- and sixth-offense OWIs are felonies with penalties of up to six years in prison for each.

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Garay's prior convictions occurred in April 2005, August 2006, August 2007, and October 2008.

On Tuesday, Garay was issued citations for operating while intoxicated, operating with prohibited blood-alcohol content, and failure to control vehicle.

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