(Photo of Rias, Kenosha County Sheriff, Photo of Michel, Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
KENOSHA, Wis. — A teacher who remains fully licensed with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) has been charged in three separate drunk-driving cases this year — all after a Kenosha County court commissioner released him without cash bail for his second OWI.
(Kenosha County Sheriff’s Office)
Thirty-year-old Christopher Garrett Rias, of Whitefish Bay, was first arrested in Kenosha County on February 8, 2025, after sideswiping a pickup truck on Highway 142 near I-94 in the Town of Paris. According to the criminal complaint, Rias appeared heavily intoxicated, slurring his speech, swaying on his feet, and confusing morning for afternoon when questioned by a sheriff’s deputy. Deputies later found six miniature “Fireball” whiskey bottles, an empty Busch Light can, and a three-quarters-empty bottle of wine inside his vehicle.
Despite the strong evidence and his prior OWI conviction, Court Commissioner William Michel II released Rias on a no-cash bail, as is his customary practice in OWI cases. Michel has faced ongoing criticism for what many view as an overly lenient approach toward drunk-driving defendants, allowing repeat offenders to return to the roads with little accountability.
Rias’s first OWI conviction came in Winnebago County in 2019. After his release in Kenosha, he was charged in Milwaukee County in August 2025 with OWI third offense, but failed to appear in court and now has an active arrest warrant in that case. Then, on October 30, 2025, Rias was arrested once again — this time in Waukesha County — for OWI fourth offense, a Class H felony punishable by up to six years in prison.
“That most recent arrest occurred while Rias was working as a guest teacher at Bay Lane Elementary School in Muskego. He was provided to the district by its external staffing partner, Kelly Education, and was not employed directly by Muskego-Norway Schools. According to the Waukesha County criminal complaint, school staff received an anonymous tip that Rias appeared intoxicated on the job. When a school resource officer met with him, Rias’s speech was slurred, his eyes were bloodshot, and his breath smelled strongly of alcohol. A preliminary breath test showed a .36 blood-alcohol concentration — more than four times the legal limit.”
Surveillance footage showed Rias nearly falling in the parking lot as he exited his vehicle, contradicting his claim that he had received a ride to school. He was arrested and charged with Operating While Intoxicated – Fourth Offense and Misdemeanor Bail Jumping for violating his Kenosha County bond conditions.
Rias is currently being held on $10,000 cash bail in the Waukesha County Jail. Despite the pending criminal charges and his multiple OWI arrests, state records confirm that his Wisconsin teaching license remains valid and is not under investigation by DPI.
Rias’s record also includes 2021 convictions in Milwaukee County for impeding traffic, hit-and-run to property adjacent to a highway, and failure to notify police of an accident, along with a speeding conviction from July 2025.
The rapid string of OWI arrests — three this year alone — underscores the public-safety risks of Kenosha County’s no-cash bail policies, particularly in OWI cases. Had Commissioner Michel imposed a financial bail in February, Rias may not have gone on to commit his third and fourth OWIs within months of being released.
If convicted on all current charges, Rias faces more than six years in prison, thousands of dollars in fines, and the permanent revocation of his driver’s license.
KCE reached out to Dr. Underly of the DPI, but she or her team didn’t respond..
Editor’s Note: This article was updated to clarify that Christopher Rias was working as a guest teacher at Bay Lane Elementary School through Kelly Education, an external staffing partner, and was not employed directly by the Muskego-Norway School District.
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17 Responses
GREAT ARTICLE KEVIN!! THANK YOU FOR EXPOSING THIS WRECKLESS INDIVIDUAL. HOPE TO SEE HIM LOOSE HIS TEACHING LICENSE AND LOCKED UP FOR A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME
If you watch the body cam video, it’s obvious he has a severe drinking problem. I hope he’s able to get help and support during this time. So sad to see people in society. Struggling and everything in their lives ripped away. Maybe more compassion is needed
Was he on WCS monitoring (random UA tests) ordered by Michel? Or did Michel order it?
Here’s what the Waukesha Commissioner ordered (by comparison):
Defendant to comply with I.D. Processing. Absolute sobriety, defendant is not to possess or consume any alcohol. Defendant is not to use/possess any controlled substances without a valid prescription and take as prescribed. Defendant is not to use/possess any drug paraphernalia. Defendant is not to enter any premises where the primary purpose is the buying, selling, or distribution of alcohol. Defendant to have no contact with Bay Lane Elementary School listed in the Criminal Complaint. Defendant is not to operate a motor vehicle unless properly licensed. Comply with all licensing restrictions. Defendant to report/comply with Wisconsin Community Services Pretrial Supervision Program under Level 3 supervision. The defendant is ordered to comply with CAM monitoring through WCS. CAM duration pursuant to Pretrial Supervision Program protocols. Defendant to pay costs associated with CAM. Defendant to be released during regular business hours only and is to report directly to Wisconsin Community Services upon release.
Michel’s order was probably something along these lines: “Defendant can continue to drink and drive as long as it’s not within a 2-mile radius of my house and his BAC isn’t higher than 0.9.”
Michel is terrible. He has been since he started.
You need to be a resident of Kenosha county to be ordered into the WCS Program. I believe he is not a Kenosha County resident according to the article. Hopefully the county he is in orders the SCRAM Monitoring if he posts and gets out of jail
Looks like Waukesha judge has ordered him in the Scram program/Alcohol Monitoring program 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Welcome to Wisconsin, where you can consistently drive a 4,000-pound piece of machinery inebriated and put other lives at risk with fear of little consequences due to lax OWI laws. The Tavern League continues to hold far too much power in this state.
He should lose his drivers license, teachers license, and do prison time.
No wonder kids are so fucked up today. Just another drunken loser.
I don’t have a problem with him keeping his teaching license, as long as he’s not allowed in any school building. 🤣 With his repeat offenses, he should be held if possible, whether it be the bail jumping or anything else that might apply, and absolutely be held on the highest possible bail since reasonable people would say conviction or not, he’s a danger to any community he has access to.
he should teach remotely so he can drink and teach at home. This solves the problem for him drinking at a school building and driving home. if you don’t have a solution, you are part of the problem.
What willMichel do when someone dies?
The photo of Michel is misleading. It appears that he is actually scolding Rias, however, it seems to be a file photo. Too bad. Another no cash bail given by Michel.
Oh of course it is no cash bail. Can Michel’s be impeached? He is useless
What does he teach? How to be a drunk asshole and teach the kids the same.
We need a 3 strikes and you’re done law.
Drivers license lifetime revocation and forfeiture of vehicle.
If they continue to offend automatic 5 years prison
We can’t fix the disease of alcoholism but we can try to at least keep them off the road