10/23/17 – The owner of a Beaver Dam tavern charged in connection with an OWI-related death was in court for an arraignment hearing yesterday (Mon). John Hammen entered a not guilty plea to felony charges of Homicide By Intoxicated Use of a Vehicle, Homicide By Vehicle With A Prohibited Alcohol Content and Homicide By Negligent Operation Of A Vehicle. Defense attorneys for Hammen said yesterday that their client could not speak due to injuries from the accident noting that he has a tracheotomy. The accident happened in September of last year on County Road SS in the Sheboygan County Town of Sherman. The 57-year-old was allegedly traveling at speeds over 100-miles-per-hour when his sports car veered off the road, struck a culvert and crashed into the tree line. The engine and transmission were ripped from the vehicle during the wreck and wound up in the ditch. Hammen and 61-year-old Freddie Nelson of Beaver Dam were flown from the scene. Nelson died three days later. According to the criminal complaint, he admitted to officers at the scene that he had been speeding and consuming alcohol. Hammen has five prior convictions for Operating While Intoxicated between 1999 and 2010. A status conference is scheduled in December.
Hammen Arraigned For OWI Death
