(1) Subject to s. 346.01 (2), the owner of a vehicle operated in the commission of a violation of s. 346.67 (1), 346.68, or 346.69 shall be liable for the violation as provided in this section. (2) Any person who observes a violation of s. 346.67 (1) , 346.68, or 346.69 may, within 24 hours after observing the violation, report the violation to a traffic officer of the county or municipality in which the violation occurred. If possible, the report shall contain the following information: (a) A description of the violation alleged. (b) The time and the approximate location at which the violation occurred. (c) The vehicle registration number and color of all vehicles involved in the violation. (d) Identification of each vehicle involved in the violation as an automobile, station wagon, motor truck, motor bus, motorcycle, or other type of vehicle. (e) If the violation included damage to property other than a vehicle, a description of such property. (3) (a) Within 72 hours after receiving a report containing all of the information in sub. (2), the traffic officer may investigate the violation and, after verifying the information provided under sub. (2) (c) to (e) and determining that there is probable cause to believe that a violation of s. 346.67 (1), 346.68, or 346.69 has occurred, may prepare a uniform traffic citation under s. 345.11 and personally serve it upon the owner of the vehicle being operated in the commission of the violation of s. 346.67 (1), 346.68, or 346.69. (b) If with reasonable diligence the owner specified in par. (a) cannot be served under par. (a), service may be made by leaving a copy of the citation at the owner’s usual place of abode within this state in the presence of a competent member of the family at least 14 years of age, who shall be informed of the contents thereof. (c) If with reasonable diligence the owner specified in par. (a) cannot be served under par. (a) or (b) or if the owner specified in par. (a) lives outside of the jurisdiction of the issuing authority, service may be made by certified mail addressed to the owner’s last-known address. (4) (a) Except as provided in par. (b), it shall be no defense to a violation of this section that the owner was not operating the vehicle at the time of the violation. (b) The following are defenses to a violation of this section: 1. That a report that the vehicle was stolen was given to a traffic officer before the violation occurred or within a reasonable time after the violation occurred. 2. If the owner of the vehicle, including a lessee specified in subd. 3., or a person on a trial run specified in subd. 4. provides a traffic officer with the name and address of the person operating the vehicle at the time of the violation and sufficient information for the officer to determine that probable cause does not exist to believe that the owner of the vehicle was operating the vehicle at the time of the violation, then the person operating the vehicle shall be charged under s. 346.67 (1), 346.68, or 346.69 and the owner, including a lessee, or person on a trial run shall not be charged under this section. 3. Subject to subd. 2., if the vehicle is owned by a lessor of vehicles and at the time of the violation the vehicle was in the possession of a lessee, and the lessor provides a traffic officer with the information required under s. 343.46 (3), then the lessee and not the lessor shall be charged under this section. 4. Subject to subd. 2., if the vehicle is owned by a dealer as defined in s. 340.01 (11) (intro.) but including the persons specified in s. 340.01 (11) (a) to (d), and at the time of the violation the vehicle was being operated by any person on a trial run, and if the dealer provides a traffic officer with the name, address, and operator’s license number of the person authorized to operate the vehicle on the trial run, then this person, and not the dealer, shall be charged under this section. 5. That another person has been convicted under s. 346.67 (1), 346.68, or 346.69 for the violation of s. 346.67 (1), 346.68, or 346.69 specified in sub. (1).
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