YORKVILLE, WI – A Milwaukee man was arrested by deputies with the Racine County Sheriff’s Department early Monday morning after he drove the wrong way on Interstate 94.
Emergency services received calls at 1:23 a.m. Monday about a white Jeep going southbound in the northbound lanes of I-94 at Highway 20. When deputies arrived at the scene, they found damaged construction barrels and a 48-year-old man in a vehicle, which had been parked in the right lane of traffic. The Jeep had also sustained damage, according to a press release by the Racine County Sheriff’s Department.
The driver told deputies he was heading to his girlfriend’s house from Milwaukee, but he got turned around. He then noticed that the interstate was closed and couldn’t figure out how to exit.
According to witnesses, the driver had entered the interstate by jumping the median curb and was seen going around barriers at the Highway 20 on-ramp. He went north on the County Trunk Highway C overpass, turned around and went south on the northbound lanes to the Highway 20 bridge. Continuing the wrong way, he drove through the barricades that were closed at Highway 20. He then made another u-turn going northbound until he was stopped by deputies near the barricades he had driven through previously.
Upon further investigation, the driver told the deputies that he had used cocaine prior to driving. He admitted that he had cocaine and cannabis with him in the vehicle. After he failed a field sobriety test, deputies searched the vehicle and found cannabis, crack rock cocaine, powder cocaine, and multiple pieces of drug paraphernalia.
The driver is being held at the Racine County Jail for driving under the influence, multiple drug and paraphernalia possession, and three counts of recklessly endangering safety with a cash bond of $37,950. He has also been charged with numerous traffic violations.
UPDATE: The operator arrested was Kristopher L. Craigmiles, a 48-year-old resident of Milwaukee, WI.