Matt’s Law - The Reason to Change
On April 24, 2004 Matt was struck and killed. The driver of the car made a decision to leave the scene of the accident. Before we can get our driver's license we get a state driver's manual to review the law of the road so we can take and pass our driving test.
Since this person had been drinking and had several past tickets for the same they knew if they were caught that they would be in serious trouble with the law. So this time when there was trouble they ran away.
At the time in the State of Nebraska was is a misdemeanor to leave the scene of a personal injury accident. So, this person was rewarded for leaving the scene. Because they left, the State could not prove they were drunk at the time of the accident. Even though they had openly admitted that they had been drinking before the accident and had not had a drink since. When they were caught four hours later, their blood alcohol level was .138. If they had stayed at the scene of the accident, it would have been a felony, punishable by up to five years in jail. Instead they received a sentence of one year for each count of misdemeanor vehicular homicide and misdemeanor for leaving the scene of an accident. This loophole needed to be closed and the law needed to be changed.
The Law At This Time:
In the US, forty-two states had a law that made it a felony to leave the scene of a personal injury accident. The eight states that need to change their law are as follows: Iowa, Kansas, New Jersey, Utah, Kentucky, Maine, Montana and Nebraska.
Why must these states sacrifice one of its own citizens before politicians are motivated to make necessary changes in the law?
What's Been Done So Far?
September 26, 2005
Bob Schmill, Matt's dad, with the help of the County Attorney and Senators Kruse and Friend began to work on getting the law changed. They began looking for a senator that will step forward and make it a priority bill to be introduced during the 2006 session. The new law would make it a felony to leave the scene of a personal injury accident. With a maximum penalty of up to five years in jail. The new law would be called "Matt's Law."
October 31, 2005
Bob Schmill, Matt's dad, met with the Douglas County Attorney, Deputy Douglas County Attorney, City Prosecutor, State Senator's Friend and Kruse, State Executive Director of MADD, and Executive Director of Project Extra Mile. Senator Friend's office had drafted a Bill to change the Law. He is planning to introduce it at the next Session in January 2006. It would make it a Felony to leave a scene of a personal injury accident. All agreed that from this time forward it would be known as "Matt's Law." The next meeting is planned for November 21, 2005. At that time we will start a letter campaign to the remaining State Senators asking them to support this Bill.
Nov 21, 2005
We had our up date meeting. County Attorney, Dep. County Attorney, City Prosecutor Office, Senator's Friend and Kruse, E.D. PEM and myself were in attendance. State Attorney General is not planning to introduce a similar Bill. He would be interested in helping with ours. After some meetings with other Senator's the wording in the bill will stand as written. We discussed the need for a third Senator to make this their priority bill so that the other two Senators could work on the Bill from inside the Judicial Committee. The letter campaign will start as soon as the Bill has a number. A media campaign will start Dec. 26 with news releases from Project Extra Mile and Matt's Dream and County Attorney's office. Unless there is an accident during the week of Christmas, the media will start at that time. We are planning to turn in the Bill the first day of the Session (Jan. 4th). That means it will be brought up by no later than the end of Jan. It was thought that when it made it back to the floor it would pass.
Jan 4, 2006
Matt's Law or LB772 was introduced in the unicameral and sent to the Judiciary Committee.
Jan 17, 2006
Met with the State Attorney General office. The State Attorney General introduced a bill on Jan. 5th, to increase the penalties for multi. DUI's and it has a section about Hit and Run. The Matt's Law bill may get included into his bill to strengthen that section. I asked if he could ask that Matt's Law could stand-alone. It would still strengthen his bill; we are both asking to make leaving the scene of a personal injury accident a felony period. But at least one way or another the law will get changed and we all know it was because of Matt.
Jan 19, 2006
Hearing for LB772 in the Judiciary Committee. The order of those testifying: Senator Friend, Douglas County Attorney, Lynn and Myself, Father of a young lady that was killed a year earlier by a Hit and Run Driver, Executive Directors of MADD and Project Extra Mile, and a Capt. from the Douglas County Sheriffs office. Senator Chambers told us at the beginning that he would not vote for this Bill, because the Douglas County Attorney office was involved with it.
Jan 20, 2006
Senator Dwight Petersen became a co-sponsor of the Bill.
Jan 26, 2006
Senator Bourne called Bob to talk about the bill and give his support of it. Also, let us know at they would be voting on LB772 in the next two weeks to send it to the floor.
Jan 31, 2006
Bob met with 7 of the 8 members of the Judiciary Committee to ask for their support. All 7 Senators were For the Bill.
March 1, 2006
Senator Combs became a co-sponsor of the Bill.
March 29, 2006
LB772 was combined into the DUI Bill (LB925) and was brought in front of the Unicameral for review and discussion. It passed and has been sent to rewrite and review will be sent to Select File next week.
April 4, 2006
LB925 was passed on to Final Reading after some debate, that parts of the DUI punishment was too harsh and that it would not allow the Judge to order a rehab program.
April 13, 2006
LB925 was passed into Law and signed by the Governor. It will become Law in 90 days.
July 12, 2006
LB925 became Law in the State of Nebraska.
Side Note:
During a TV interview, Bob made a statement that after he was finished working on changing the Law in Nebraska he would start working on Iowa. That statement grew rapidly in Iowa and on April 20, 2006 the Governor of Iowa signed their Hit and Run Bill into Law. Also during this time letters were sent to Kansas Legislators. Asking to change their law. It became Law in Kansas on July 1, 2006. Similar Laws have also been passed in Maine and New Jersey since April 1, 2006.