Police Catch Boy Driving Mom’s Truck
Sometimes the line between negligent driving and safe driving is hard to define. Situations like how fast one can drive on a curvy, wet, or icy road often present tough judgment calls that must be made by the driver. Sometimes, though, negligent driving is incredibly easy to spot and obvious from the outset. Any situation that can be described in a newspaper article with the phrase “[t]he officer also noticed that the driver's head could not be seen above the steering column, so he stopped the truck […]” is very likely, if not always, a situation where someone is driving negligently.
It goes without saying that if a driver’s head is not visible from looking at the vehicle, for whatever reason, that person cannot see the road well enough to drive safely. In this situation, the driver’s head was not visible because the driver was a twelve year-old boy who had taken his mom’s truck for a spin. He had apparently been driving for a couple of hours before he was spotted by law enforcement officials. The boy also told police that he had driven to a nearby city to pick up his sister, took her to get a candy bar, and then took her back home. Miraculously, he was able to do all of this without wrecking the vehicle and injuring himself, his passenger, or anyone else.
This situation shows how a person could be held liable for an auto accident in a personal injury suit without ever leaving the house. The mother or other party that is responsible for supervising the boy would be on the hook for the damages or injuries suffered by any parties involved had the unsupervised boy caused an accident while driving the vehicle. Situations such as this, where parents either fail to properly supervise children or allow their children to drive before they are properly licensed or have a permit, occur much more frequently than many would like to admit. Unfortunately, these situations often lead to accidents. Tennesseans who are injured as a result of such negligence should consult a skilled personal injury attorney who can help them recover for their losses.
Source: http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=129601&catid=8
