"Habitual offender" Jeff Hardy should have got at least 1 year in prison to avoid 'killing somebody', says WWE veteran

Jeff Hardy's lengthy DUI trial recently came to a conclusion and the final verdict was far lighter than many predicted. But WWE veteran Dutch Mantell didn't approve of the outcome and recently voiced why Hardy should've been more severely punished.

It's currently unclear whether or not Jeff Hardy will return to AEW or even pro wrestling as a whole, but his light sentence gives him the chance to jump back into the industry if he gets the chance to.

During the latest episode of Storytime with Dutch Mantell, the WWE veteran warned that Jeff Hardy's behavior has been habitual and could likely result in more fatal situations.

"He is a habitual offender, which means that at one point in the future, if he continues his behavior, he’s gonna drive again and he’s gonna drink and drive. People have the wrong idea of prison. What prison is really for is to protect us. He’s going to continue on until he kills somebody else, or himself. I think he should’ve gotten at least a year out of this charge – he should’ve got three years." (01:45 onward).

While most vocal fans aren't as harsh when it comes to Jeff's sentencing, many recently voiced that they wished that The Charismatic Enigma would instead cut his losses and choose to retire.

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Dutch Mantell believes sending Jeff Hardy to jail would potentially protect other people

WWE executive Bruce Pritchard also recently shared his opinion on The Charismatic Enigma's sentencing and urged the legend to get his act together as this could be his last chance to do so.

Continuing on the same episode, Mantell also pointed out that Jeff Hardy would've likely been sentenced for longer if he had charges surrounding a firearm.

"And I like Jeff, he’s never done anything wrong to me, he just has a bad habit. But if you have a bad habit you have to protect him from it too, and while you protect him please protect us! (…) But I think he needs a little more time, even just to serve notice that we’re not playing with this. If it would’ve been a gun they would’ve thrown him away for a long time." (03:16 onward).

Only time will tell where Jeff Hardy will end up in the future, but it seems that even those who criticize the star only want what's best for him.

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If you use the quotes above, please credit Storytime with Dutch Mantell and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.