LOUISVILE, Ky. (WHAS11) -- A convicted drunk driver and persistent offender has been granted probation in the Kentuckiana court system, again.
Rebecca Johnson pleaded guilty to trafficking meth in Oldham County Court Thursday and was sentenced to five years. But she won't spend that time in prison, as the judge granted her probation instead.
Rebecca Johnson was first arrested in 2006, after police say she was drunk behind the wheel when she crashed, killing two friends.
In 2007, she walked in to court charged with two counts of manslaughter and DUI charges and walked out with a penalty of five years on probation.
"There's plenty of evidence out there to suggest we're just not doing enough to sufficiently punish those who make this choice,” MADD’s Rosalind Donald said.
Since then, Johnson has been in and out of jails across Kentuckiana.
In Oldham County, official reports show she has been booked in six times in the last three years. She has spent a total of 94 days in the county jail.
Multiple mug shots show multiple arrests, in Jefferson County since 2012. She was most recently arrested in 2017 on drug and weapon charges. That case is still pending in court.
"We have a penalty system that just doesn't hold them accountable to the fullest extent,” Donald said.
Johnson has faced drug charges, weapon charges, and has a long list of probation violations. But on Thursday, after pleading guilty to trafficking meth, an Oldham County judge released her on probation.
Donald said, "It’s very disheartening."
She has seen numerous cases like Johnson's where convicted felons continue to commit crimes.
Donald calls it a break down in the system.
"A lot of the victims I serve want to forgive, they want to move on, they want to get to this better space of dealing with the grief and sometimes they feel like holding this animosity is going to keep them from doing that. They want to forgive. But then they feel like sometimes the offenders aren't necessarily sorry or remorseful for the actions that they've done,” Donald said.
Now the hope is Johnson will be held accountable in court on Tuesday. That’s when she is expected to plead guilty in front of Jefferson County Judge.
►Contact reporter Shay McAlister at smcalister@whas11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@WHAS11Shay) and Facebook.