Boat Accidents

The state Assembly will begin to overhaul drunken driving laws in September in an effort to make Wisconsin roads safer.

A bill, sponsored by Rep. Tony Staskunas (D-West Allis), is scheduled to go before the house in mid-to late September and then to the Senate. The bill includes numerous druken-friving deterrents including requiring ignition interlocks for repeat offenders and making fourth offenses felonies in many cases.

The plan would also:

• Create a new treatment program;
• Ensure that people convicted of multiple offenses face similar sentences;
• Enhance penalties for drunken-driving offenses that cause injuries; and
• Require driver’s licenses to be suspended for longer periods for drunken drivers who serve jail sentences

Pitman, Kyle & Sicula is a Wisconsin personal injury law firm representing victims of drunken driving accidents throughout the state.  Our Wisconsin injury attorneys have successfully represented injured people in almost every county. We know Wisconsin.

Two boats, both full of teenagers, collided on Paddock Lake yesterday afternoon. One of the passengers was rushed to a local hospital.

According to witnesses, the victims saw a boat, operated by a 14-year-old, coming at them and jumped into the water for safety. Unfortunately, a teenage girl remained onboard and was hurt in the collision. She was taken to St. Catherine’s Hospital in Kenosha where she was treated for a broken collar bone.

The 14-year-old operator did have a boater’s safety certificate.

Pitman, Kyle & Sicula is a Wisconsin personal injury law firm handling boat accident cases throughout the state.  Our Wisconsin injury attorneys have successfully represented injured people in almost every county. We know Wisconsin.

Take a look at our auto accident checklist:

It may be helpful to print the checklist and keep a copy in your vehicle at all times.

Pitman, Kyle & Sicula is a Wisconsin personal injury law firm handling car accident cases throughout the state.  Our Wisconsin injury attorneys have successfully represented injured people in almost every county. We know Wisconsin.

DUIs just don’t happen on Wisconsin’s roadways, they happen on Wisconsin’s waterways as well. According to the Winona County Sheriff’s Office, a Galesville man with six previous DUI convictions narrowly missed eight young swimmers before crashing his boat. He was arrested for operating under the influence.

Curtis James Harnish, 54, was operating a 14-foot fishing boat when, according to his statement, he thought he saw someone he recognized on Cotter Island on the Mississippi River. Traveling at high speeds, Harnish attempted to turn his boat sharply and hit the wing dam, then hit a beached pontoon boat.

Witnesses said had it not been for the pontoon boat, Harnish would have struck the group of swimmers ranging from 5 to 11-years-old. Harnish’s BAC was .18.

He was charged with first-degree boating while intoxicated.

Harnish has six prior DUI convictions; three in Wisconsin and three in Illinois and is currently on probation in Wisconsin for a 2008 conviction. One of the conditions of his probation prohibits him from consuming alcohol.

With the 4th of July weekend nearing, we hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable Independence Day!

Pitman, Kyle & Sicula is a Wisconsin personal injury law firm handling boating accidents through out the state.  Our personal injury lawyers have successfully represented injured people in almost every county. We know Wisconsin.