By Shereen Siewert
A felony drunken driving charge has been dropped for a Wausau man admitted to the intensive care unit after a moped crash last year, court records show.
Police responded at about 10:30 p.m. June 24, 2022 to County Road WW for a report of a moped crash and discovered Jesse S. Pagel unresponsive in the roadway, court documents state. Investigators say Pagel, then 34, appeared to lose control of the moped while crossing the train tracks at Second Street in the village of Maine.
Pagel was transported to a local hospital for treatment of his injuries and was admitted to the ICU. Police said an empty 750-ml bottle of whiskey was discovered near the crashed moped, along with nine unopened cans of beer.
A lab technician at the hospital drew a blood sample that was sent to the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene in Madison and prosecutors filed a fifth-offense drunken driving charge against Pagel.
But on Dec. 6, the felony OWI charge against Pagel was amended to negligent operation of a motor vehicle, a misdemeanor. Pagel was placed on probation for 12 months as part of a withheld sentencing agreement, court records show.
Pagel, who was convicted in December 2021 of his fourth OWI charge, has a 0.02 percent BAC restriction on his license. The judge in the crash case ordered him to maintain absolute sobriety and undergo AODA treatment as directed by his probation agent.
