EC man skips sentencing for OWI-6; warrant issued for his arrest

CHIPPEWA FALLS — An Eau Claire man who was slated to be sentenced Tuesday for his sixth drunk-driving offense failed to show up in court, so a warrant has been issued for his arrest.

Robert W. Loomis Jr., 57, 507 Vine St., is charged in Chippewa County Court with OWI-6, bail jumping, and operating while using a restricted substance. He previously posted a $750 cash bond.

The hearing Tuesday was slated to be a plea and sentencing. However, Loomis has "not been compliant with pretrial monitoring," and he has not taken daily preliminary breath tests, as required by terms of his release.

"Pre-trial specialist Kaitlin Horstman noted the defendant missed 28 daily check-ins and nine random drug tests through the pretrial monitoring program between his court appearances," a court document reads.

Judge James Isaacson issued a warrant for Loomis' arrest, and the county will extradite him.

According to the criminal complaint, a Chippewa Falls police officer observed Loomis driving on S. Main Street on Aug. 22, 2022, and learned the license plates had expired in 2019.

The officer stopped the vehicle and he observed Loomis had signs of intoxication, and Loomis failed field sobriety tests. The officer located a wax substance on the ends of tweezers in the car, which he believed was from using marijuana.

Loomis was transported to St. Joseph's Hospital for a blood draw.

"After the blood was taken, Loomis asked if methamphetamine would stay in a person's system for 12-15 hours," the complaint states.

Loomis was last convicted of operating while intoxicated in 2005 in Price County Court, online records show.

Court records show Loomis was convicted of negligent handling of a weapon in 2015, and battery in 2004 and 2006.

Loomis was charged in Price County Court last week of removing major parts from a vehicle, which is a felony. He is slated to return to that court on Oct. 15.