Walworth County chase, deputy hit; man gets 25 years in prison

WALWORTH COUNTY, Wis. - A Racine man was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison after he hit a Walworth County deputy during a high-speed chase.

Investigators said 26-year-old Tony Perales was driving drunk – nearly twice the legal limit – at the time.

"I was on scene for one minute – one minute my life was changed forever," said Deputy Wayne Blanchard. "Life will never be back to the way it was before that morning."

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Deputy Wayne Blanchard gave impassioned remarks in front of a packed courtroom, speaking publicly for the first time since he was seriously injured in August 2021. He barely survived.

"Everything I do causes pain," Blanchard said.

Blanchard was behind a guard rail, trying to stop a car driven by Perales on Aug. 1, 2021. Perales lost control, hitting the guard rail and Blanchard. 

As Blanchard spoke, Perales listened from a Walworth County Jail cell. Before he was sentenced, he issued an apology.

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"I’m deeply remorseful for my actions of what happened on Aug. 1," said Perales. "Please forgive me, in your guys' hearts."

Angela Blanchard, the deputy's wife, asked for the harshest sentence – describing the suffering of the past year.

"He has sentenced Wayne to a lifetime in a broken body," she said.

Tony Perales, Walworth County Deputy Wayne Blanchard

Judge Bruce Schroeder sat in a Kenosha County courtroom. In addition to prison, he sentenced Perales to 14 years of extended supervision. It was not the maximum, but the deputy was pleased.

"I think it’s a wake-up to those that feel that they can just run from the police," he said.

Deputy Blanchard said he has had 45 surgical procedures since the crash. He'll have two more in January and faces a lifetime of recovery.