Sunday, July 31, 2011

Having a designated driver is good; using an 8 year old is bad


State Police arrested a man who was intoxicated and let his eight-year-old drive while the family drove from Mississippi to Texas, according to State Police spokeswoman Trooper Melissa Matey.

State Police stopped the truck around 6:30 a.m. on Interstate-12 near Holden, La. Police pulled the truck over after a call from a concered motorist said the truck was driving erratically and a child was at the wheel, said Matey.

“Troopers determined that the driver was an eight-year-old with his four-year-old sister in the rear seat and their father, Billy Joe Madden, 28, of Hattiesburg, Miss., in the passenger seat,” said a statement from Matey.

According to police, Madden was intoxicated and sleeping in the the truck while his son drove the truck from Mississippi to Dallas, Texas.

Both children were turned over to Child Protective Services and are awaiting the arrival of a family member, according to police.

Madden was arrested and booked into the Livingston Parish Jail on two counts of child desertion, parent allowing a minor to drive, open container, and two counts of no child restraint and no seatbelt, according to police.

source

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