WAUPACA, Wis. - A 64-year-old man is accused of driving drunk for the 14th time since 1994 after crashing his car in Waupaca County.
A criminal complaint says Daniel Nordell, of Almond, hit a mailbox, a speed limit sign and a utility pole in Farmington last week before he was arrested.
The crash on Grandview Road in Farmington was reported about 7:30 p.m. May 24. The caller said that a sport utility vehicle hit a pole in front of the house and that the driver was talking with neighbors nearby, according to the criminal complaint.
A deputy found that the vehicle left skid marks in a driveway and hit a mailbox, a speed limit sign and a utility pole, which had not snapped but was leaning, the complaint states. The SUV had significant damage to its front end, and both front airbags had deployed.
WAOW-TV says a preliminary breath test found his blood alcohol content at 0.17 percent, more than twice the legal limit to drive, and well above the 0.02 percent level allowed because of his past drunken driving convictions.
Nordell's last conviction was in 2006 in Waupaca County, when he was sentenced to three years in prison and three years of extended supervision.
The maximum punishment for a 10th OWI or subsequent offense is 15 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.
