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'Pam's Law' moving forward through state senate

Posted at 10:01 PM, Mar 06, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-07 00:19:44-05

Justice may be coming in the form of a new law for a Valley family who lost a loved one. 

In November 2016, Pamela Hesselbacher was inside of a crosswalk with her two young kids, heading home from a nearby park, when a driver ran a red light, striking the young family. 

Pamela would not survive. Her two small children were severely injured. 

The driver, William Epperlein, was only charged with a misdemeanor, despite the fact he was driving on a suspended license and had a prior history of DUIs. 

It all has to do with a loophole in the Arizona law, only allowing for misdemeanor charges if a driver has a license that is suspended rather than revoked. 

But Pamela's family has been fighting to change that. 

On Tuesday, HB 2522, better known as, "Pam's Law," moved out of its committee and is moving forward through the state senate. 

If signed into law, it would allow for felony charges in cases like Pamela's. 

"Changes need to be made, let's make them," Pamela's mother Jodi explained to ABC15's Sonu Wasu earlier this year

"I was outraged," said Kaleigh Kieran, Pamela's sister, also during an interview with ABC15 earlier this year. "I couldn't believe that he couldn't be prosecuted for this one small thing."

The bill's sponsor tells us it has the support of the Arizona Attorney General's Office.