Drunk drivers in Tennessee could be forced to pay child support if they kill someone's parent

A Tennessee bill that would require drunk drivers to pay child support if they kill a parent due to intoxication or aggravated vehicular homicide has passed.

House Bill 1834 would require a person who is convicted of vehicular homicide to pay a fee in the form of child support if the victim was the parent of a minor child. Requirements for this would include that each child of the victim would receive support until they reach 18 years old and graduate high school.

This, of course, is very similar to the traditional payments those who pay child support are subject to. Typically child support is given when a parent pays the primary caregiver of their child until that child becomes a legal adult at 18.

This groundbreaking bill would change the course of drunk drivers and presumably lower the reckless endangerment. Currently, the amount of the payments are set to be determined by the financial needs and resources of the child. This would also involve input from the child's surviving parent or guardian and the state, should the child is in the custody of the Department of Children's Services.

In another similarity that is similar to child support, the standard of living the child is used to will also be a factor in determining the payment amount and how much they would receive altogether.

In the case that the defendant is incarcerated for their part in the fatality and driving under the influence they have one year after their release from incarceration to begin paying. This gives leeway for those who are unable to pay the required child maintenance.

The bill had already unanimously passed in the state's House before it unanimously passed in the Senate on Wednesday. An amendment to rename the bill "Ethan, Haile, and Bentley's Law" was added before it passed.

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