EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) -- It’s a problem some are calling an epidemic: drinking and driving.

And now after two local men are arrested, one for what’s believed to be his 15th drunk diving offense and the other for his eighth, WEAU 13 News looked into how the men were allowed to continue driving, and what’s being done to stop drunk driving in Wisconsin.

50-year-old Mitchell Bundy of Eau Claire has 15 Operating While Intoxicated arrests.

The latest happened Sunday night in Altoona.

Altoona Police said Bundy has 14 prior OWI convictions dating back to 1991, three in South Carolina, four in Oklahoma and seven in Wisconsin.

When he was pulled over, Bundy was driving with a valid driver’s license.

Another man in Clark County was arrested on Sunday night for his eighth OWI offense.

Court records show 38-year-old Adam Rivera was stopped for speeding and failed a sobriety test.

He was driving on a revoked license.

Clark County Prosecutors said Rivera has OWI convictions dating back to 2001.

While Rivera didn’t have a valid license, Bundy did.

So how can offenders continue to drive legally after racking up so many offenses?

That’s the question WEAU asked Wisconsin State Patrol Sgt. Jerry Voight.

While he said Bundy’s high number of drunk driving convictions are concerning, there aren’t any laws in Wisconsin to stop him from getting his license back after each conviction.

“His priors go back to 1991 so it's a long time. Apparently it was long enough to serve out his suspension and do everything he needed to do to meet the requirements and get his license,” Voight said.

With 205 drunk driving deaths in Wisconsin in the last year, Mothers Against Drunk Driving or MADD says drunk driving in Wisconsin is an epidemic.

“41 percent of crashes in Wisconsin were caused by drunk drivers. The national rate is 31 percent. That’s one way to measure how the state's doing when it comes to drunk driving,” said Frank Harris, MADD’s State Legislative Affairs Manager.

Harris said stronger drunk driving laws in Wisconsin are needed and lawmakers should target drunk drivers on their first offense.

Fourth offense OWI is considered a felony in Wisconsin.

“In Wisconsin, most first time offenses for drunk driving are not considered criminal offenses so it's very difficult to view a state as serious about drunk driving when drunk driving is not considered a crime,” Harris said.

He said new laws have been proposed in the Wisconsin Legislature to increase sobriety check points and have breathalyzer devices installed in the cars of first offenders.

“Drunk driving is a problem not only in Wisconsin but throughout the United States,” Harris said.

Harris said both of the measures, Assembly Bill 433 and Senate Bill 320 are awaiting committee hearings.

Bundy is being held in the Eau Claire County Jail and his case has been sent to the District Attorney’s Office.

The Clark County Jail said Rivera is still being held.

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STIORY FROM 2-6:

(WEAU) - An Eau Claire man is arrested for operating while intoxicated for the 15th time.

Online court records show Mitchell Bundy, 50, is charged with 15th OWI. Altoona police say Bundy was arrested after he was pulled over around 10:45 p.m. near River Prairie Dr and US 53 Sunday night and failed a field sobriety test.