Connors was convicted of operating a vehicle while intoxicated in October 1989, April 1996, May 1997, April 1998 in which there was an injury, and October 2004. In August 2005 Connors was sentenced to nine months of jail with work release and placed on three years of probation.

Before the recent arrest, Polacek said that he received a call from a friend saying, “I saw Jim in a bar,” and before Polacek could call Connors, he had been arrested.

Describing the incident as a relapse, Polacek suggested it was “nipped in the bud,” by Connors’ arrest.

“Up until this point he has been overcoming it quite well,” said Polacek, highlighting Connors’ annual contributions of between $4,000 and $5,000 to the Wisconsin Dells Police Department and Fire Department.

After a review of city donations in response to a request Wednesday, Wisconsin Dells Treasurer Karen Terry wrote in an email that only one transaction appeared to come from Connors since 2013, a $1,000 check dated Oct. 31, 2017, made out to the Wisconsin Dells Police Department K-9 Fund.

“It may sound crazy, but it was a good thing I got caught,” said Connors, wearing a polo shirt, shorts and sandals to the hearing. “Otherwise I might think I could get away with it once and could get away with it again.”