A new law in Texas requires convicted drunk drivers to pay child support if they kill a child’s parent or guardian, according to House Bill 393.
The law, which went into effect Friday, says those convicted of intoxication manslaughter must pay restitution. The offender will be expected to make those payments until the child is 18 or until the child graduates from high school, “whichever is later,” the legislation says.
Intoxication manslaughter is defined by state law as a person operating “a motor vehicle in a public place, operates an aircraft, a watercraft, or an amusement ride, or assembles a mobile amusement ride; and is intoxicated and by reason of that intoxication causes the death of another by accident or mistake.”
I think, perhaps, this isn’t a problem the police can solve in America.
The justice system (IMHO. my opinion is not worth much) should focus on rehabilitation and restitution to the victim. It’s probably impossible to live in parts of Texas without a license, due to lack of alternative transportation.
I don’t feel bad for people who have DUI/DWIs, but I do think you should be able to recover from a mistake like that. Driving without a license can feel like a necessity, because having a car in America can feel like a necessity. Having no (or very few) opportunities makes mistakes unrecoverable.
I’m not saying these people deserve to be able to drive, it’s just, revoking their license doesn’t do anything and it’s obvious why.
I used to watch a YouTube motovlogger. He advocated after someone got a DUI they can only get a motorcycle license. His logic was they’d only kill themselves. I could get behind that.
That’s not necessarily true. Pedestrians are definitely a thing. And people would still drive illegally without a license to have passengers, children with them, groceries, larger items, ect. On top of that, being a motorcyclist is more dangerous and one could argue that it’s a cruel and unusual punishment to increase the danger selectively for certain people.