Bentley and Mason’s Law: Can a Drunk Driver Be Ordered to Pay Child Support in Missouri?

Short answer: Yes, in some cases. Starting August 28, 2026, Missouri law says that if a person is convicted of, or pleads guilty or no contest to, driving while intoxicated (RSMo 577.010) or driving with excessive blood alcohol content (RSMo 577.012), and that offense caused the death of a child’s parent, the court shall order that person to pay child maintenance once the surviving parent or guardian files a petition. The law is RSMo 454.1050, called “Bentley and Mason’s Law.” It usually runs until the child turns 18, and it can run to 21 while the child is in school. But there’s a catch every family needs to understand before they file a wrongful death case: the order and a civil judgment offset each other, and the order of events matters.

A drunk driver kills a mom or dad. The family is wrecked. And on top of the grief, the money that parent brought home every two weeks is just gone.

Missouri’s legislature passed a law aimed right at that gap. Here’s what the statute actually says, word for word where it counts, and where the open questions are.

What is Bentley and Mason’s Law?

Bentley and Mason’s Law is Missouri Revised Statutes section 454.1050. It was passed in 2026 (the revisor’s history note lists H.B. 1740, S.B. 1135 and S.B. 1421) and its effective date is August 28, 2026. The Missouri Senate’s bill page for SB 1135, sponsored by Sen. Mike Henderson, shows it was signed by the governor with that same August 28, 2026 effective date.

Here’s the core rule from subsection 2. Child maintenance gets ordered when all of these are true:

• The person was convicted of, pled guilty to, or pled nolo contendere (no contest) to an offense under section 577.010 (driving while intoxicated) or 577.012 (driving with excessive blood alcohol content).
• That offense caused the death of a parent or parents of a child or children.
• A surviving parent or guardian files a petition to receive child maintenance from that person.

If those boxes are checked, the statute says the person “shall be ordered by the court” to pay. Shall. Not may.

Notice what’s on that list and what isn’t. The statute names only those two DWI offenses. Missouri’s DWI statute itself makes it a felony to cause someone’s death with criminal negligence while driving intoxicated (577.010.2(6)(b) and (7)(a)). If a criminal case ends with a conviction or plea under some other statute, or the charge gets pleaded down to something that isn’t 577.010 or 577.012, whether this law applies is a real question. Talk to a lawyer before anyone assumes it does.

How long does the drunk driver have to pay?

Under subsection 2, maintenance runs until the child:

• Dies;
• Marries;
• Enters active military duty;
• Turns 18, unless an extension in subsection 3 applies; or
• Turns 21, unless the order specifically goes past 21 because the child is physically or mentally incapacitated.

Subsection 3 lays out the extensions:

• Incapacity. If the child is physically or mentally incapacitated from supporting themselves, insolvent and unmarried, the court may extend maintenance past 18.
• Still in high school at 18. Maintenance continues while the child keeps attending and progressing in a secondary school program, until they finish or turn 21, whichever comes first.
• College or vocational school. Maintenance can continue to 21 if the child enrolls by October 1 after high school graduation (or completing a high school equivalency), carries at least 12 credit hours a semester, and keeps grades good enough to re-enroll. The child has to send the court transcripts and enrollment documents each semester. A child working at least 15 hours a week can take as few as 9 credit hours. There are accommodations for a child with a developmental disability or a physical or health condition that limits their course load. Failing half or more of a full-time course load in a semester can end the maintenance for good.

How much child maintenance can the court order?

Subsection 4 says the amount must be “reasonable or necessary” for the child’s maintenance after the court considers all relevant factors, including:

• The child’s financial needs and resources;
• The financial resources and needs of the surviving parent, or the guardian (including the state, if the state is the guardian);
• The standard of living the child would have enjoyed;
• The child’s physical and emotional condition and educational needs;
• The child’s physical and legal custody arrangements; and
• The surviving parent’s or guardian’s reasonable work-related child care expenses.

Subsection 5 adds that the court also has to consider the child support guidelines in section 452.340.8 and Missouri Supreme Court Form 14. That’s the same worksheet Missouri courts use in ordinary child support cases.

Payments go through the circuit clerk as trustee, or the court can send them through the state’s Family Support Payment Center (subsection 6). And subsection 7 says that once an order is entered, the director of the Family Support Division or a designee shall issue an order telling the driver’s employer or other payer to withhold the money, up to federal wage garnishment limits. In plain English: it can come straight out of a paycheck.

What if the drunk driver is in prison?

This is a common question, because a DWI that kills someone can mean prison time. Subsection 8 says that if the person is incarcerated and can’t pay, they get up to one year after release to begin paying, including any arrearage. And if the obligation would otherwise end (say the child turns 18) but it isn’t paid in full, payments keep going until the whole arrearage is paid.

So the debt doesn’t disappear while the driver sits in prison. It waits.

The part every family needs to read: how this interacts with a wrongful death lawsuit

Here’s where families can get hurt if nobody explains it. Subsection 9 has four parts. Here’s what each one says:

• 9(1): A civil judgment first means no maintenance. If the surviving parent or guardian brings a civil action on behalf of the child against the driver “prior to any child maintenance order” under this law and gets a judgment in their favor, “no maintenance shall be ordered.”
• 9(2): Maintenance first, then a civil judgment, means an offset. If the court orders maintenance and the surviving parent or guardian later brings a civil action and gets a judgment on the child’s behalf, “the child maintenance order shall offset the judgment awarded in the civil action.”
• 9(3): Auto insurance money reduces the maintenance. If the surviving parent or guardian gets a payment from any motor vehicle liability insurer relating to the parent’s death, the maintenance order “shall be offset by the amount obtained from such insurer.”
• 9(4): Crime victims’ compensation doesn’t reduce it. Money received under section 595.045, the Crime Victims’ Compensation Fund, doesn’t reduce the maintenance amount.

Why does this matter so much? Because in Missouri, the children of a person killed by a negligent driver are usually among the people who can bring a wrongful death claim under RSMo 537.080. And only one wrongful death action can be brought against any one defendant for the death of any one person (537.080.2). So the family has to think about the child maintenance petition and the wrongful death case together, from day one.

Think about the timing. The maintenance law kicks in after a conviction or plea, and criminal cases can take a long time. A wrongful death claim in Missouri generally has to be filed within three years (RSMo 537.100). In a lot of fatal crash cases, the at-fault driver’s auto liability insurer is where the first money comes from, and 9(3) says that insurer money offsets the maintenance order. Missouri’s minimum auto liability limits are $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury, which is often nowhere near the real loss in a death case.

The statute doesn’t spell out how every one of these offsets gets calculated. It doesn’t say, for example, whether “offset” in 9(2) means the total value of the order or only what’s actually been paid, how a settlement without a judgment is treated outside the insurer rule in 9(3), or exactly how a wrongful death action that benefits several family members lines up with a “civil action on behalf of” a child. Those are lawyer questions, and the answers could change how and when you file. Don’t sign an insurance release or file a petition without someone walking you through the sequencing.

Can the order be changed later?

Subsection 10 says the order can be modified only on a showing of changed circumstances “so substantial and continuing as to make the terms unreasonable.” That’s a high bar, and it’s the same kind of language Missouri uses for modifying ordinary child support.

Does the law apply if the crash happened before August 28, 2026?

The statute took effect August 28, 2026. Its text doesn’t say whether it reaches crashes, deaths, convictions or pleas that happened before that date. If your family lost a parent before then, ask a lawyer whether a petition is possible in your situation. Don’t assume either way.

What should a family do after a drunk driver kills a parent?

• Follow the criminal case. The maintenance law turns on a conviction or plea under 577.010 or 577.012. Ask the prosecutor’s victim advocate how the case is charged, and tell them you care how it resolves.
• Don’t sign anything from an insurer yet. Under 9(3), insurer payments offset the maintenance order. Understand that trade before you take a check.
• Keep the deadlines in view. Missouri wrongful death claims generally must be filed within three years (RSMo 537.100). Personal injury claims for people hurt in the same crash generally have five years (RSMo 516.120). Exceptions exist.
• Gather the financial picture. The court looks at the child’s needs, the surviving parent’s resources, and the standard of living the child would have had. Pay stubs, tax returns, child care costs and school records all matter, both for maintenance and for a wrongful death claim.
• Get one plan for both cases. The maintenance petition and the civil case affect each other. Have one lawyer look at both.

If your family is dealing with this, you can read more about how we handle these cases on our St. Louis wrongful death lawyer page, our Columbia wrongful death lawyer page, our drunk driving car crash lawyer page, and our post on who can file a wrongful death lawsuit in Missouri.

Frequently asked questions

What is Bentley and Mason’s Law in Missouri?

It’s RSMo 454.1050, effective August 28, 2026. If a person is convicted of, or pleads guilty or no contest to, DWI (577.010) or excessive blood alcohol content (577.012), and the offense caused the death of a child’s parent, the court shall order that person to pay child maintenance when the surviving parent or guardian files a petition.

Can a drunk driver be ordered to pay child support in Missouri?

Yes, under RSMo 454.1050, if the driver was convicted of or pleaded guilty or no contest to DWI or excessive BAC under 577.010 or 577.012, the offense caused the death of the child’s parent, and the surviving parent or guardian petitions the court.

How long does child maintenance last under 454.1050?

Generally until the child turns 18, dies, marries or enters active military duty. It can continue to 21 while the child is in high school or meets the college or vocational school requirements, and it can go past 18 for a child who is incapacitated, insolvent and unmarried.

How is the amount of maintenance decided?

The court orders an amount that is reasonable or necessary after considering factors like the child’s needs, the surviving parent’s or guardian’s resources, the standard of living the child would have had, and child care costs. It also considers the guidelines in 452.340.8 and Missouri Supreme Court Form 14.

What if the drunk driver is in prison?

Under 454.1050.8, an incarcerated person who can’t pay has up to one year after release to begin paying, including any arrearage. Payments continue past the normal end date until the arrearage is paid in full.

Does a wrongful death lawsuit affect child maintenance under 454.1050?

Yes. If the surviving parent or guardian gets a civil judgment on the child’s behalf before any maintenance order, no maintenance is ordered. If maintenance is ordered first, the order offsets a later civil judgment. Payments from a motor vehicle liability insurer offset the maintenance order. Crime Victims’ Compensation Fund money does not reduce it. Get legal advice on timing before filing either case.

How long do I have to file a wrongful death claim in Missouri?

Wrongful death claims generally must be filed within three years under RSMo 537.100. Most personal injury claims have five years under RSMo 516.120. Exceptions exist, so get advice about your specific case.

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This post is general information about Missouri law as of November 2026, not legal advice for your situation. RSMo 454.1050 is new, and courts haven’t yet answered every question about how it works.