Missouri Bill May Require Drunk Drivers Who Kill Parents To Pay Child Support

Proposed legislation in Missouri would mandate child support payments from convicted drunk drivers who cause the death of a parent.

Missouri lawmakers appear to be advancing legislation that would require convicted drunk drivers who cause a parent’s death to pay child support after their release from prison.

State Sen. Mike Henderson recently addressed lawmakers at the Missouri State Capitol, joined by the two boys who inspired his proposed legislation, known as Bentley and Mason’s Law, KCTV5 reports. Named in honor of the brothers who lost their parents in an April 2021 crash, the bill would require individuals convicted of killing a parent while driving under the influence to provide child support to the surviving children.

“I just think that this is the right thing to do,” Henderson said.

Cecelia Williams stood at the forefront of the effort at the Capitol, advocating on behalf of her grandsons, Mason and Bentley, after their parents were killed by a drunk driver in 2021. Since losing her son, daughter-in-law, and 4-month-old grandchild in the April 2021 crash, Williams has repeatedly traveled to the Missouri Capitol seeking accountability.

Now raising the boys left behind, Williams says she is determined to see justice served.

“I wanted to bring something to help families that need it when they find themselves in the situation of raising kids again,” Williams said.

Under the proposal, if the offender is sentenced to prison, child support payments would begin one year after their release and continue until the child turns 18 or 21, depending on the child’s age at the time of the parent’s death. Henderson has championed the legislation since the 2021 crash.

Although the bill has been introduced in Missouri multiple times without passage, it currently faces no opposition. The family says they are hopeful this will be the year it finally becomes law.

Byrnes Mill Police Department Sgt. Cody Unfress was the first officer to arrive at the scene of the 2021 crash. Now serving as a specialist who investigates similar incidents, Unfress said the case struck a deeply personal chord. As a child, he was also orphaned by a drunk driver. The 2021 crash was among the first major incidents he encountered fresh out of police training, leaving a lasting impact on him both professionally and personally.

“It has affected me. And it has affected all those who were on scene that night,” Unfress said. “Because 34 years ago, I was that little boy sitting back there.”

Missouri ranks ninth nationwide for driving under the influence cases. Versions of Bentley and Mason’s Law have already been enacted in six other states. In Tennessee, a family became the first to receive child support payments under similar legislation.