6-year-old takes family car after missing bus

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6-year-old takes family car after missing bus - Yahoo! News

WICOMICO CHURCH, Va. – A 6-year-old Virginia boy who missed his bus tried to drive to school in his family's sedan — and crashed. His parents were charged with child endangerment. State police said the boy suffered only minor injuries and authorities drove him to school after he was evaluated at a local hospital for a bump on his head. He arrived shortly after lunch, Sgt. Tom Cunningham said.

It happened around 7:40 a.m. Monday on Route 360, about 61 miles east of Richmond.

The boy, whose name wasn't released, missed the bus, took the keys to his family's 2005 Ford Taurus and drove nearly six miles toward school while his mother was asleep, police said.

He made at least two 90-degree turns, passed several cars and ran off the rural two-lane road several times before hitting an embankment and utility pole about a mile and a half from school.

The boy told police he learned to drive playing Grand Theft Auto and Monster Truck Jam video games.

"He was very intent on getting to school," said Northumberland County Sheriff Chuck Wilkins. "When he got out of the car, he started walking to school. He did not want to miss breakfast and PE."

His parents, Jacqulyn Deana Waltman, 26, and David Eugene Dodson, 40, are each charged with child endangerment, Wilkins said. Waltman is being held without bond. Dodson was released on a $5,000 bond.

It was not clear if they had attorneys.

The boy and his 4-year-old brother were placed in protective custody.

"This really is a story of miracles," Wilkins said. "The Lord was with him, along with everybody else on the highway."
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Holy cow! At least he didn't hurt himself. You gotta admire the kid for being so dedicated to getting to school.
 
Which reminds me of a story my mother told me once about my cousin Barbra when they both were 6: Barbra told my mother she would drive my mother to town so she got the keys and they both hopped in the car and as soon as the car went down the driveway, everyone came running. I'm told Barbra got into a LOT of trouble that time and she was always being spanked for something.
 
Heh...I have to admit that was kind of funny. After he crashed, he act like nothing happened as he's still in a hurry to school since he didnt want to miss breakfast and PE.
 
now that's what i call a kid who loves going to school! i'm just glad he wasn't hurt...
 
If I missed school, I'd stay home and put my jammies back on and watch cartoons all day! Fun fun fun! :p
 
Wow! A kid that actually wants to go to school! I hope someone sees fit to encourage his enthusiasm.
 
He was eager to get to school that is for sure.

:) school breakfast must really be good there.
 
Wow wow wow.

Too much influence for the kid to drive, but he's got guts to know he missed the bus and he's got to get to school.

However I feel it's a bit unfair for the parents. What if they were sick with the flu? Works night shifts till 5AM? Sleeping in? Couldn't get up on time?

The kid didn't even tell his parents what he was attempting to do, as it states that she was still sleeping.

I understand that there's a 14 year difference between the husband and wife, but let's ignore that variable. Is that even fair to charge them $5000 over that?

One thing I forgot to add: GTA2-4 isn't made for kids under teenage years, that's one penalty for the parents. Except probably GTA1, that game had very little violence.
 
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The question I have is where was the dad in all of this. it says the mom was asleep but what about the dad. if he was at work what the heck was his fault?
 
I don't think it's fair to blame the parents. What were they supposed to do-keep the car keys locked up? Maybe they were being blamed for not being awake when the kid was leaving for school.

I feel the same when parents are charged with a crime because their little kid managed to unlock the front door and wander out while Mom or Dad was napping. Some things happen that you just can't predict or even prevent.
 
jillio said:
Wow! A kid that actually wants to go to school! I hope someone sees fit to encourage his enthusiasm.
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I was thinking the same thing, 6 years old and can reason better than many adults out there. Time for a lesson in accountability! LOL
 
S.O.B. said:
I was thinking the same thing, 6 years old and can reason better than many adults out there. Time for a lesson in accountability! LOL
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No kidding! To my way of thinking, a responsible parent would have been awake and making sure their 6 year old made it safely on the bus. This is a case of a kid having more sense than the parent.
 
weird! it sounds like the boy wants to get away from home. But i know some small kids realllly love school. I couldnt believe that his mom was sleeping at this hour knowing kids need to go school. it doesn't sounds right to me.

The boy and his 4-year-old brother were placed in protective custody.
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I bet there is more than what we read in news.
 
jillio said:
No kidding! To my way of thinking, a responsible parent would have been awake and making sure their 6 year old made it safely on the bus. This is a case of a kid having more sense than the parent.
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That's my way of thinking but I have to agree with the others about other factors in play to why the mother was sleeping. I would rather not jump the gun and assume the mother is being irresponsible...need more facts.

However, I am just glad that the child is ok and nobody else was hurt but yea, it shows that he really values going to school!
 
shel90 said:
That's my way of thinking but I have to agree with the others about other factors in play to why the mother was sleeping. I would rather not jump the gun and assume the mother is being irresponsible...need more facts.

However, I am just glad that the child is ok and nobody else was hurt but yea, it shows that he really values going to school!
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Don't you wish all your students were this anxious to get to school?:giggle:

If the kids were placed in protective custody, it doesn't bode well for the parent's case. They don't remove kids without evidence of neglect as a rule.
 
flyingace said:
I don't think it's fair to blame the parents. What were they supposed to do-keep the car keys locked up? Maybe they were being blamed for not being awake when the kid was leaving for school.

I feel the same when parents are charged with a crime because their little kid managed to unlock the front door and wander out while Mom or Dad was napping. Some things happen that you just can't predict or even prevent.
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That actually happened to a kid I know. She is 5-6 years old also (kindergarten), deaf, and uses ASL primarily. One day, her grandmother, who was taking care of her, was taking a nap. And this girl was hungry but there was no food, so she took a few dollars out of her grandmother's purse, went outside, walked several blocks to the convenience store. Her uncle works there and saw her alone. So the uncle took her back to the grandmother's house. They asked her why she did that and she just said that she was hungry and didn't want to wake up the grandmother because she always gets angry...

Oh and she lives in the projects too.....

I just went up to her and simply said "You're awesome."
 
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