An incoming Missouri lawmaker wants drunk drivers to pay child support if they kill a parent. Known as Bentley and Mason’s Law, Senator-elect Mike Henderson, R-Desloge, is proposing to require people convicted of DUI who kill a parent to pay financial support to the victim’s children until they turn 18.
“If you’ve orphaned children because you chose to drive while you were intoxicated, then you should have some responsibility for them until they are age 18,” Henderson told Missourinet.
Henderson said that this legislation is necessary due to the number of residents driving without insurance.
“The problem is in Missouri, we have so many drivers driving without insurance nowadays,” he said. “You can’t get blood out of a turnip. Some people say, ‘Well how do you get money out of them afterwards?’ Once they go to work, it’d be just like child support that they would pay until (the child is) 18. So, they could even have it garnished if necessary.”
Henderson likens his bill to life insurance – you hope to never need it, but it’s important to have, just in case.
“If you have insurance, they’re probably going to end up being a civil case with the, you know, the person that has money or the insurance company who has the deepest pockets,” he said. “And they go after to try to get some help for this child. But we have so many people driving without insurance and if they can’t do it civilly, then this gives them another option.”
The 2025 legislative session begins on January 8th.
Copyright © 2024 Missourinet