Police: Man arrested for 6th OWI hours after being told not to drive
Oct. 9—EAU CLAIRE — An Eau Claire man was arrested for drunken driving for the sixth time just hours after being advised by a police officer not to drive, authorities say.
Daniel L. Rieck, 50, was charged recently in Eau Claire County Court with a felony count of sixth-offense drunken driving.
Rieck is scheduled to make his initial court appearance on Dec. 2.
According to the criminal complaint:
An Eau Claire police officer was sent to the Kohl's parking lot in Eau Claire on Friday, Oct. 1, to speak with Rieck, who was concerned about a homeless woman.
While speaking with Rieck, the officer noticed he was clearly intoxicated and had trouble speaking and standing.
The officer advised Rieck not to drive his vehicle because he was intoxicated. Rieck admitted he was intoxicated and said he was not going to move his truck.
Later in the officer's shift that day, police were called to the nearby Walmart parking lot in Eau Claire for a disturbance. The caller said there were two men fighting in the parking lot.
When the officer arrived on the scene, he observed Rieck and his vehicle, which had moved from Kohl's to Walmart.
Rieck admitted to the officer he drove from Kohl's to Walmart to see his child. While at Walmart, Rieck said he got into a confrontation with another man.
The officer determined Rieck still appeared to be intoxicated. The officer asked Rieck to perform field sobriety tests. Rieck showed signs of impairment in completing the tests.
Rieck agreed to a breath test, which registered at .214, 2 1/2 times the legal limit for driving.
Rieck was arrested for drunken driving. He was taken to Mayo Clinic Health System in Eau Claire for a blood draw.
Rieck was previously convicted of drunken driving in August 1999, and twice in March 2000 in Eau Claire County, and in November 2007 and February 2014 in Chippewa County.
If convicted, Rieck could be sentenced to up to five years in prison.
