9-year-old California boy takes mom's car to get to school: CHP
A 9-year-old who took his mom's car with the intention of driving to school, but ended up giving officers a bit of a chase that ended just outside Plumas Avenue Elementary School. March 27, 2024. Photo: CHP
OROVILLE, Calif. - In a scene straight out of a movies, the California Highway Patrol said a 9-year-old who took his mom's car with the intention of driving to school, ended up giving officers a bit of a chase that ended just outside Plumas Avenue Elementary School.
"Yes, you read that right, a 9-year-old behind the wheel," the CHP wrote on Facebook.
The drama unfolded on Wednesday at about 9:20 a.m. at the intersection of Grand Avenue and 4th Street in Oroville, 65 miles north of Sacramento.
A CHP officer spotted a gray Volkswagen sedan stopped oddly in the middle of the intersection.
When the officer told the driver to move, the car sped off, "leading to a short and erratic chase."
The pursuit ended, the CHP said, in a dirt parking lot near the elementary school. Both the CHP car and the Volkswagen suffered minor damage. No one was hurt.
The officer was "met with the wide-eyed 9-year-old child," who had taken his mother's car with the intention of driving himself to school.
The CHP said that the boy was "safely sent to school" after authorities were alerted and the situation was documented.
The incident "serves as a wake-up call to secure our vehicles and educate our children on the dangers of unauthorized driving," the CHP posted.
Hundreds of people commented and shared the CHP's post, including Kimberly Slack, who said she was the boy's grandmother.
She wrote that her grandson took the car while his mother was in the bathroom.
"He took it upon himself to just take the car," Slack wrote.
As soon as her daughter realized what happened, Slack said she called 911.
"We realize this could have ended so badly but we thank God he or no one was hurt," Slack wrote.
Despite taking the car without permission, Slack noted her grandson had good intentions.
"And yes, to many of you saying he was on a mission to get to school," Slack wrote. "That's exactly what he told the officer, ‘I’m going to school.’ "