A jury convicted a man who was caught in Richmond driving under the influence for the fifth time and told arresting officers they were “parasites wreaking havoc on personal rights.”
Paul C. Altmann, 53, of Genoa City, Wisconsin, was charged in July 2022 with aggravated driving under the influence fifth offense, unlawful possession of cannabis by a driver and speeding 15-20 mph above the limit.
The Richmond Police Department conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle speeding on Route 12 near Market Street through downtown Richmond around 12:45 a.m. on May 2, 2022.
The officer made contact with Altmann, who was the driver, and smelled an odor of alcohol coming from him.
He observed that Altmann was not responding appropriately to his questions, prosecutors said.
The officer requested that Altmann perform field sobriety tests and Altmann agreed.
Officer Sears noted indicators of alcohol consumption as well as indicators of impairment, prosecutors said.
A portable breath test showed Altmann’s blood alcohol content was 0.223.
Prosecutors said Altmann was placed under arrest and backseat squad video showed Altmann telling officers that they were “parasites wreaking havoc on personal rights.”
Altmann was initially only charged with misdemeanors before a grand jury upgraded the charges.
Records from the Illinois Secretary of State showed that Altmann had four prior driving under the influence violations.
Those occurred in 1988 in DuPage County, 1993 in Lake County, 1996 in Lake County and 2002 in Lake County.
A jury trial last week resulted in the jury returning guilty verdicts for all charges.
Altmann faces four to 15 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections based on the prior offenses.
He remains out on bond and will be sentenced by McHenry County Judge Mark Gerhardt on May 30.