Posted Friday May. 13, 2022, 3:30 pm
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It is common to find minors as young as ten learning how to drive in rural America. When the little ones reach the pedals, they can become an extra hand on the farm and transport farm inputs or produce from one point to another. But driving on the road is an entirely different issue.
Unfortunately, learning how to drive at a young age usually encourages young children to take to the road or have parents send their children on tasks that involve being on public roads.
There was renewed news that a pickup truck driver was involved in an accident in West Texas that killed nine people, including him, his father, six members of the New Mexico golf team and their coach, a 13-year-old focused on practice.
Accidents with underage children are very common
According to William Van Tassel of AAA, it is legal for people of any age to drive on private property. But teens who want to drive on public roads must be of a certain age and meet legal driving qualifications such as having a road licence.
According to statistics from the NHTSA, nearly 47 fatal car accidents and 1,057 injuries were caused by drivers 13 years of age or younger. Even when they reach the legal driving age, teens are the most dangerous drivers. According to Kathy Chase, of Washington, D.C., Highway and Auto Safety, this was a worst-case scenario at worst and illegal. Unfortunately, even an adult who would have been held accountable for irresponsible actions died instantly.
Cash Hogan, a 60-year-old businessman from South Dakota, drove a Ford Bronco on his father’s ranch for the first time at the age of 10. According to Hogan, he would drive from one side of the farm to the other to do household chores such as repairing barbed wire or delivering supplies. However, his father did not allow him anywhere near a public road without the permission of the learner.
There were many factors at play
The boy’s age wasn’t the only factor that led to the accident; It happened on a high speed road, and it was dark. According to federal authorities, the boy was driving a Dodge pickup on a two-lane road with a speed limit of 75 mph and his father was sitting on an aisle seat when one of its front tires exploded.
The car lost control, swerved into oncoming traffic, and collided with a truck carrying a New Mexico college golf team. Unfortunately, the boy, his father, six college students, and their coach all lost their lives in the accident. While the accident may have occurred in a seemingly rural environment, this road can be very crowded due to the surrounding oil fields.
Texas Driving Requirements
In Texas, one must be at least 14 years old to take classes to obtain a learner’s license. At age 15, they can get a temporary driver’s license to drive on the road with a coach or authorized adult in the car. But they can only drive at night when they are given full driving privileges at age 16.
“In Texas, a person will be given full driving privileges when they turn 18, only after they have completed all state requirements. The 13-year-old broke laws and regulations,” says a car accident attorney Matthew E. Olsbrook From the Olsbrook Auto and Truck Wreck attorney. He was too young to drive on the road, and the accident occurred at night when a person without full driving privileges should not drive. Unfortunately, his life and the lives of his father and six other young men ended in the accident.
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