Patricke Conley, the drunk driver accused of killing two Tennessee parents on Christmas Day, may be required to pay child support for the three children until they are 18. Conley reportedly lost control of his vehicle after hitting a mailbox and swerved into the lane where Dustin and Brittany Dillard, both 33, and their three young children were driving. According to Conley’s arrest report, his car flew into the air before colliding with Dillard’s Jeep Wagoneer SUV.
When police arrived, they discovered the SUV flipped over, with Dustin and Brittany Dillard dead at the scene and their sons seriously injured. Conley was charged with vehicular homicide on two counts and vehicular assault on three counts. Tennessee saw the implementation of several new laws on January 1. In particular, state lawmakers hope it will make drivers think twice about driving drunk.
Tennessee has passed the Ethan, Hailey and Bently’s Law, under which, if the victim is the parent of a minor, the person convicted of vehicular homicide or aggravated vehicular homicide due to intoxication must pay child support. The guilty party would have to pay until the child reaches the age of 18 and graduates from high school. If their payments are about to expire but they have not paid the required amount, they must continue to pay until they catch up.
Missouri resident Cecilia Williams proposed the Senate bill to hold drunk drivers accountable after her son Cordell, 30, his fiancée Lacey Newton, 25, and their four-month-old son Cordell II were killed by a drunk driver. Cecilia’s grandsons Bentley, five, and Mason, three, were orphaned in the crash.
The Ethan, Haile, and Bentley’s Law was named after Cecilia’s grandson Bentley, as well as the two children of Nicholas Galinger, a Tennessee police officer killed in a hit-and-run by a drunk driver. Tennessee is the first and only state to enact this legislation.
Conley was also charged with traffic violations and having an open container. He was also accused of violating his probation after being sentenced to eight years in prison on drug charges. Conley appeared in court in a wheelchair on December 29 with a large cut on his face. He entered a not-guilty plea.
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