Mattie's Law: Family of lineman who died in Eden demands stronger safety with proposed bill

Yahoo

21-05-2025

EDEN, N.C. (WGHP) — It's been nearly a month since four linemen were hit and killed by a dump truck in Eden.
Now, one of the families who lost a loved one is pushing for change.
Jason Lockwood and Robert Russell returned to the site on the 500 block of Church Street in Eden to remember their friend and brother, Matthew Lockwood, along with four other linemen who died in a crash on April 24.
'It's an emotional reminder that, unfortunately, my brother is not going to be home at the end of the day. But at the same time, it's kind of good to be back to make sure the site is at least maintained,' Jason said.
Jason said his brother was a Marine who taught him to never give up.
'He probably absorbed that lesson the greatest out of all of us and followed that through the rest of his life … Me and Robert got to talking and said his death can't be for nothing,' Jason said.
Which is exactly what inspired Jason and Russell to write up a safety bill called Mattie's Law, which is named after Matthew, to protect roadside workers across the state.
I includes mandatory safety barriers and shadow vehicles in dangerous zones as well as proximity alert wearables and smart detection technology.
'We have it for our new smart cars for when we're about to collide into something or going too fast,' Russell said.
The bill would also add immediate support for the families of injured or fallen workers and tougher penalties for reckless drivers.
It comes after the city of Eden leaders revealed that 66-year-old Michael Vernon, who is accused of hitting and killing the four linemen, did not have a valid commercial driver's license.
'If you don't have a license, you shouldn't have been involved in this at all. You shouldn't have been able to kill anyone. You should've been held accountable as a gross aggravating factor, which is how we go from a misdemeanor directly to a felony,' Russell said.
Right now, a draft of Mattie's Law has gained support through an online petition that already has more than 3,000 signatures.
To prevent more tragedies involving roadside workers like Matthew, Jason hopes state lawmakers will take swift action and discuss the safety bill in the North Carolina General Assembly.
'I have personally been reaching out to many lawmakers. I have had some interest. I'm hopeful, with later revisions, we can get this thing out there and prevent things like this from happening again,' Jason said.
Jason will not share which lawmakers are in support of the bill until he receives formal support.
Meanwhile, Vernon is facing four counts of misdemeanor death by motor vehicle.
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