A 44-year-old Waukesha woman was accused of her fifth impaired driving offense on Thursday, June 12.
Kathleen M. Nowicki, 400 Delafield St., was charged last week in Waukesha County Circuit Court with operating a vehicle while intoxicated. She has four prior OWI convictions.
If convicted again, she faces up to six years in prison and $10,000 in fines. She would also lose her driving privileges for at least two years.
According to the criminal complaint, Nowicki was pulled over early in the morning on June 12 because she was driving erratically, swerving and jerking her car across all lanes of traffic on Moreland Boulevard.
The traffic officer noted in the complaint that Nowicki appeared to be 'completely disheveled, had slurred and thick speech, a raspy voice' and also seemed to be 'lethargic and then at times very excited.'
The officer asked Nowicki to perform some field sobriety tests based on these observations, which she failed.
Police found a prescription bottle of amphetamine in Nowicki's purse, and she reportedly 'spontaneously' admitted to ingesting some Adderall and muscle relaxers, and smoking marijuana earlier in the day, though no alcohol was detected in her system.
According to court records, Nowicki is being held on a $5,000 cash bond. If released, she must maintain absolute sobriety and is prohibited from driving any vehicle without a proper license.
Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday, June 19.