Mothers grief inspires Alabama bill notifying parents of childrens traffic tickets [Video]

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) – Parents with teen drivers know the worry they feel when their children get behind the wheel. A bill in the Alabama Legislature would notify parents if their child gets a traffic citation.

The House of Representatives passed the bill Thursday. It now goes to the state Senate.

The bill is inspired by a tragic situation that claimed two lives.

“My oldest son, Tyler, who we call T.J., he was killed in a car accident on June 18 2022,” said April Vafeas.

She said T.J. was killed instantly. His girlfriend, Lexie, died four days later.

Losing her son motivated Vafeas to get the law changed. After he died, she discovered he had gotten three traffic tickets for not wearing a seat belt when he was a teen.

Vafeas posted about it on Facebook. Her high school classmate, state Rep. Jamie Kiel, saw the post and reached out, …