Kentucky woman convicted of DUI killings walks free after probation hearing is postponed

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Kentucky woman convicted of killing two men in a DUI crash and trafficking drugs continues to dodge prison time.

Rebecca Johnson appeared in court Thursday in Oldham County and remains a free woman despite a recent probation violation. Court documents show Johnson walked away from her substance abuse treatment and even admitted to using someone else's urine for a drug screening.

During the court session, Johnson's attorney, Rob Riley, asked for the provocation hearing to be pushed back until he hears from lawyers in Jefferson County regarding Johnson's priors.

"My client has suffered for a long time from a traumatic brain injury that interferes with her ability to do or not do things," Riley said. "We're looking at how that may have affected her actions here."

Rebecca Johnson in Oldham County Court — Rebecca Johnson standing alongside her attorney, Rob Riley.

In court, Johnson stood with her hands tucked behind her back, awaiting her fate. It was not long before the hearing, which could have sent her to prison, was tabled for another month.

WDRB News asked how difficult going through the motions of court and trauma has been for Johnson.

"I don't have an opinion about that," Riley said. "I'm just her lawyer. My job is to look at the legal facts and apply the law. I don't have an option about how hard it's been on her."

But Tammy Cantrell-Williams, who was in the courtroom Thursday and for all of Johnson's previous hearings, said it is difficult for she and her family to grieve and move on.

"While she walks out of the courtroom free every time, this is really getting disgusting," Cantrell-Williams said. "It is like an open wound in my heart.

"I was hoping she would go to prison today."

It’s an outcome still possible in the future, one Cantrell-Williams said would bring her steps closer to getting justice for her son and his friend who died in the 2006 DUI crash caused by Johnson.

Johnson's will have two revocation next month: one on Sept. 27 in Jefferson County and one on Sept. 29 in Oldham County.

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