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An alleged drunk driver who has been accused of causing the deaths of two parents could be forced to pay child support to their three orphaned children due to a recent law.
Dustin and Brittany Dillard died on 25 December after their vehicle was struck by a car driven by 42-year-old Patricke Conley, who was later arrested for losing control of his vehicle.
During the incident his car veered off the side of the road and hit a mailbox before driving up a steep embankment and becoming airborne.
The Isuzu Ascender driven by Conley then collided with a Jeep Wagoneer belonging to the Dillard family.
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Dustin and Brittany's three young children were also in the car and were seriously injured, but all three survived the collision.
According to an arrest report from Bradley County Sheriff's Office, officers who arrived on the scene claimed they could smell 'a strong odour of an alcoholic beverage' in Conley's car and found 'numerous Bud Light beer cans' within the vehicle.
Charged with two counts of vehicular homicide and three counts of vehicular assault, Conley has pleaded not guilty during an appearance in court on 29 December.
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However, if found guilty he could end up having to pay child support to the three orphaned children due to a new law passed in the state of Tennessee which makes drunk drivers responsible for the payments.
The amount Conley would have to pay would be determined by a court, and payments would continue until the young children turned 18.
According to the Daily Mail, witnesses to the collision saw the Dillard's Jeep flip over and rushed to save Dustin and Brittany's three sons Preston, Pierce and Pryor.
They report that two men ran over to the site of the collision, with one of them smashing a vehicle window with his handgun but unable to rescue the stricken children until police arrived.
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There is an attempt to get a law forcing drink drivers who take the lives of a parent to pay support to their child passed in every state in the US.
The bid has been named 'Bentley's Law' after the child of parents who were killed by a drunk driver.
His grandmother Cecilia Williams became his legal guardian and has since been campaigning for all US states to introduce the law requiring drunk drivers to pay child support.
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The law has been passed in Tennessee and similar proposals are being drafted in many other states.
Joe Harker