CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — A family said their wound has been reopened after the man who hit and killed 8-year-old Forrest Hooper in Chesapeake in 2023 was granted a motion in Circuit Court to have his five-year jail sentence reconsidered.

The victim’s family says this is tough news to take in.

“Our family, our hearts were just getting to the point where it can start to mend,” said Cindy Lutz, the boy’s grandmother. “This just rips that wound open again.”

The 8-year-old’s life was cut short in October 2023 on South Battlefield Boulevard near Hillcrest Parkway, when he was hit while trying to cross the street, the car was driven by Richard Humbert.

“He gave me a life sentence to live without Forrest,” Lutz said. “He got five years.”

A jury found Humbert guilty in November of failing to report an accident. He was sentenced to 10 years in jail, with five suspended, along with three years of supervised probation upon release.

Humbert will also be required to forfeit his license for one year upon his release. But now, Humbert’s defense team has called for the court to suspend the remainder of his sentence, or that he be placed under GPS electronic monitoring, according to a motion filed in March. The motion stated Humbert has no prior criminal record, and that he has cooperated fully with detectives, still maintaining he thought he hit a deer, not a child.

“It would be another crime if Mr. Humbert walked out of that court room with his freedom,” Lutz said.

Hooper’s family said they feel Humbert’s original sentence was light to begin with, but they had come to terms with it. Now, they fear they could be back at square one.

“Irritated, I was irritated,” Lutz said, “Now we’ve got to focus again on how he died.”

Humbert’s new hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. May 29 in Chesapeake Circuit Court.