Suspected speeding stop leads to 6th OWI charges

A traffic stop early Friday lead to sixth-offense operating while intoxicated charges for a Racine man, officials said.

The Richland County Sheriff’s Office said a deputy stopped a vehicle on Highway 14 near County Road JJ in Buena Vista at 2:22 a.m. Friday. The vehicle was stopped on suspicion of speeding and passing in a no passing zone, according to the report.

The deputy believed the driver, 65-year-old Thomas E. Baker, was under the influence and the Baker failed field sobriety tests, the sheriff’s office said.

Baker was arrested on sixth-offense OWI charges and an extraditable warrant out of Michigan for an OWI-related offense, according to the release.

Baker was taken to Richland County Jail.