A recently signed new law will make it more financially painful for drivers who hit a first responder pulled over on the side of the road.

The law is called Lyndon’s Law. It can mean losing your license for hitting a worker or responder working along the side of the road.  The law was named after MoDot employee Lyndon Ebker, who was hit and killed in Franklin County, Mo in 2016

Before the new law, a driver was charged with endangerment of a highway or emergency worker if they were hit but not injured.  If the worker was injured or killed, they would be charged with aggravated endangerment of a highway or emergency worker. The penalty for the latter charge was 12 points on your license, which would be a suspension, and a significant fine.

Under Lyndon’s Law, the penalty now applied to a responder or worker injured or killed will apply even if the responder or worker is just hit without an injury.  Furthermore, it requires a driver to pass both the written and driving parts of the driver’s exam before their license can be restored.

The hope is that this law will act as a further deterrent and make drivers more cautious as they enter a work zone or scene where first responders are operating.