After the death of a classmate and friend, Ole Miss students are rallying behind HB 1089, also known as Rivers’ Law.
The bill would require that a parent be contacted when someone between the ages of 18 and 21 is arrested for DUI or a drug charge.
Students will gather Thursday at 2:00pm at the Lyceum, joined by law enforcement and other advocates who support the bill.
This bill didn’t start with a lawmaker wanting to pass legislation. It started with a mother’s tragedy.
In October, Rivers McGraw had just been bailed out by friends after a DUI charge. This was his second DUI. He had just returned to school at Ole Miss after spending 90 days in a rehab program.
“He had done well, he had been working, and he wanted to return to school. I thought he deserved that,” said Lauren McGraw, his mother.
After getting out of jail, afraid that he would go to prison and disappoint his mother, Rivers took his own life.
The House passed the bill unanimously, and it passed through the Senate committee on Tuesday. Now it heads to the full Senate for debate.
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