Teen driver convicted of vehicular homicide asking for modified probation
COWETA COUNTY, Ga. (FOX 5 Atlanta) - The parents of a bride-to-be, who was killed in a car accident, doesn't want the convicted driver to be allowed to study abroad for college. An attorney for the teenager has asked a judge to allow the University of North Georgia student to travel to China this fall.
The parents of the victim said the teen already got off easy for killing their daughter. Court records in Coweta County show last year a superior court judge gave what Kay Stephens' family considers a lenient sentence.
Court records show Jackson Ridgeway was a 17-year-old high school student in March 2017 and was going 75 in a 45 mile an hour zone when he passed a truck in a no passing area.
His Dodge Ram pickup slammed into a car going the opposite way down Cedar Creek Road. Twenty-four-year-old Kay Stephens died instantly. Her fiancé Dylan Harris was paralyzed. Allen and Angie Stephens continue to grieve for their daughter Kay. And Allen, who was driving, also continues his recovery from serious injuries.
Coweta Court records show Jackson Ridgeway pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide, along with three other charges.
Ridgeway got boot camp, but no prison time as long as he behaves himself for the next five years on probation. He also got a $1,000 fine and 300 hours of community service.
The Stephens family were not happy with that sentence. And recall hearing over and over again in court that it was just an accident. They don't agree.
Now, court records show Jackson Ridgeway's attorney has filed a motion to amend the college student's probation so he can travel to China this fall and study abroad.
The motion reads "As part of the defendant's course of study he must study abroad and due to his major and minor it is recommended that he take class in China the next school year."
Kay Stephens family said they have not gotten an opportunity to change the consequences of that day and neither should Jackson Ridgway
FOX 5 News contacted the attorney who filed the motion but have not heard back for comment
The hearing for the motion is scheduled Wednesday morning here in Coweta County Superior Court.