Waukesha City Hall crash, man sentenced to 2 years in prison
WAUKESHA, Wis. - A Waukesha man who was arrested after speeding with his headlights off and crashing into a Waukesha City Hall sign has been sentenced.
Court proceedings
What we know:
Court records indicate Colton Sanders pleaded no contest to a gun possession felony, and two other charges were dismissed in a plea deal.
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A Waukesha County judge sentenced Sanders to two years in prison and two years of extended supervision.
Colton Sanders
Reckless driving complaint
The backstory:
According to a criminal complaint, Waukesha police responded to the area of Delafield Street and Madison Street for a report of a vehicle driving recklessly just before midnight on Feb. 21, 2026.
Officers were advised that a silver car was speeding downtown with its headlights out. As an officer approached City Hall, he spotted the taillights of a car that appeared to be in front of the building.
Damage to Waukesha City Hall sign
When the officer got closer, he saw a silver car that appeared to have crashed into the stone "Waukesha City Hall Municipal Court" sign, the complaint said. The car had significant front-end damage.
The officer approached the car, and the person inside was trying to restart the car numerous times. Because the tint on the vehicle's windows was dark, the officer could not see the vehicle's driver. Eventually, the officer opened the driver's door. The driver, later identified as Sanders, was inside.
"You know how it is, fast car"
What they're saying:
The officer asked Sanders what happened. The complaint said Sanders "paused for a moment" and stated: "Took the turn a little too fast." Sanders added that he turned his lights off, and the officer noted Sanders had "slow, slurred speech." When the officer asked Sanders if he needed any medical assistance, Sanders said he did not and added: "You know how it is, fast car."
The investigating officer asked Sanders how much he had to drink, and Sanders stated, "not that much," the complaint said. He indicated he had been drinking at a friend's house and was trying to go back home. The complaint said Sanders told the officer he had "non-alcoholic" beer.
Sanders was ordered to get out of the car. When he did, the officer smelled "a moderate odor of consumer intoxicants emitting from his person," the complaint said. When the officer informed Sanders that he wanted to run him through standardized field sobriety tests, Sanders replied that he would not do so without his lawyer present. Sanders was then arrested.
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Dig deeper:
During the arrest, the officer asked Sanders if he had anything on him that would stick or poke the officer, or if he had any weapons. The complaint said Sanders answered, "I got one," and then stopped responding.
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The officer lifted Sanders' jacket and spotted a handgun grip sticking out of his waistband, according to the complaint. The officer noted the gun had a fully loaded magazine and a round in the chamber. Another tax magazine containing additional ammunition was also found.
When the officer searched Sanders' car, he found a "large K-Bar style fixed blade knife concealed near the driver's seat," the complaint said.
The defendant did agree to provide a sample of his breath. The test registered a 0.13 BAC — above the legal limit for driving, which is 0.08 BAC.
The Source: Information in this post was provided by Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, the criminal complaint associated with this case, and previous FOX6 News coverage.
