The new proposal would make carjacking punishable by up to 60 years in prison.
Wisconsin’s governor will determine whether he supports a new carjacking law approved by the State Assembly on Tuesday.
The bill aims to add felony carjacking to the list of Wisconsin’s laws.
This comes at a time when Milwaukee Police are reporting a drastic increase in carjackings, from 77 YTD in 2021 to 127 YTD in 2023, a whopping 65% increase.
Rep. John Sppiros, R-Marshfield, said current state laws already make carjacking a crime, but there isn’t a carjacking law.
“Carjacking is not defined by state statute,” Spiros explained. “It could be burglary to a vehicle, robbery, burglary, things like that.”
The new proposal also makes carjacking a Class B Felony if someone uses a weapon.
“Typically a carjacking is a vehicle that is occupied,” Spiros explained. “It is occupied by a person, and somebody is forcefully taking it.”
Much of the debate over the new plan centered on Milwaukee, with some Republicans criticizing the city as unsafe.
“I don’t think you could pay me to go down there now,” Rep. Paul Tittl, R-Manitowoc, said of Milwaukee during Tuesday’s debate.
The new proposal would make carjacking punishable by up to 60 years in prison.
Democratic state Rep. Ryan Clancy, D-Milwaukee, said 60 years in prison is more prison time than someone would get for other violent crimes.
“What we are doing when we take one arbitrary charge, and we highlight that above all of these others as Class C and B felonies,” Clancy said. “We [are suggesting] that carjacking, with even the hint of a weapon being involved, is more heinous than any of these.”
The proposal passed the Assembly on a 80-18 vote that saw both Republicans and some Democrats vote in favor of the new charge. The State Senate passed the same legislation along a similar 23-8, bipartisan vote.
The plan now heads to Gov. Evers’ desk. The governor’s office says he supports the new proposal.
