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A teenager getting a driving lesson from a parent struck three girls who were playing in a driveway in Ashburn, Va., Thursday afternoon, said the Virginia's Loudoun County Sheriff's Office.
The 15-year-old driver apparently accelerated by accident while turning in a cul-de-sac and jumped a curb on Morven Woods Court before striking the children, authorities said.
The youngest victim, 7, was flown to Inova Fairfax Hospital with life-threatening injuries. She is now in stable condition.
Read original story on NBCWashington.com
An 8-year-old and a 10-year-old were taken to another local hospital with less severe injuries.
"It's a pretty safe neighborhood," said neighbor Mehboob Raha. "It's a dead end. You cannot go outside from this particular area... People are very sensible here."
The teen driver's father was in the passenger seat at the time of the crash.
In Virginia, teenagers can apply for a learner's permit at age 15½. The minimum age to get a driver's license is 16 years and three months.
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Empty parking lots. That's where you train them. Not in a neighborhood where kids are outside playing.
Exactly. And even then, stay away from those magnetic fire hydrants and sign posts.
You have to get to the empty parking lots... And who's to say that they hadn't done that yet? This is only an article about what happened during one part of this student's learning experience. Very sad for all involved.
Our first day of driver's ed was in a parking lot. Next day we were out on the streets and 3rd day we were on the highway...4th day the beltway.
It's an accident...just unfortunate and sad.
Has anyone considered the other children were practicing being culdesac "speed bumps"?
its trashburn they are a bunch of rich asshats who do what they want. I hate that area of VA and I live across the highway from them. The only thing that separates us is the ferrari, bentley and aston martin dealerships
God some people are so dumb. Who the hell (besides this idiot) teaches someone to drive on the street? At minimum, aren't you concerned with what could happen to your car?
Joe, you should move.
I wonder if this young driver will still continue after this accident. I would be tramatized.
Bitter, are we?
if you look at a map of where it was it seems like a safe spot to learn street driving. The article does not say if it was the first time the kid was behind the wheel. They could have spent hours in a parking lot and the father felt it was time to learn on a street. Lisa I was here before Trashburn cropped up so I am not going to move from my paid off house.
Well, they've got to learn to drive on the street eventually or else what's the point?
You can't spend your entire driver's education experience in empty parking lots, or you'll never know how to drive on the street in traffic.
They don't need to learn to drive on the street until they can do so legally, with a learner's permit. With both my kids, I took them to a nearby industrial park on Sundays to practice driving. That way they were familiar with working the brake and gas, what it took to turn, how to back up, and such. Then they did their time with the driver's ed instructor, which was more productive because they knew how to handle a vehicle. Only after they had driven with the instructor and had their permit did I take them on streets. Having a permit might have made no difference in this accident occurring, but it's sure going to make a difference legally and from an insurance perspective for the family of the boy that was driving illegally. I hope these poor kids are all right.
the article does not say the kid did not have a learners.
Unfortunately, in some counties in NoVA (like Fairfax County) you can be given a ticket for practicing in a parking lot. Has to do with liability laws and threats of lawsuits from the property owners. That's how I learned how to drive in the snow 40 years ago.
That being said, most of the county cops I know won't actually give a parent a ticket, but I know of a couple who have just because they wanted to be a-holes about it.
This is why the old driver's ed cars had a 2nd brake for the instructor.
Started two kids out in an empty parking lot, when I thought they knew how to handle the pickup truck (rough) then they started on side streets, than busy streets, then freeways, the same way I learned. Slow and Easy. That truck did not leave PARK for 45 minuets, break, gas, look, break, gas, look, Than it didn't leave the parking lot until they could drive without me in the truck and follow my direction including parking parallel parking too. While out side I gave all direction and they had to pay attention to me and driving and that meant stopping in-front of me.
My parents did not teach me to drive; instead, the first time I drove was through Driver's Ed. And actually, my very first driving lesson with them, they had me out on a residential street. I was shocked. That was the first time I would ever be driving in my life, and they had me driving past people's homes and cars parked in the street. It was terrifying.
He was 15 and obviously was not competent enough to drive on the street.
He is 15 and not experienced in driving. That was what his dad was doing, giving him experience and a chance to get used to driving. It is highly likely this kid had his learners permit and was legal to drive with an adult in the passenger side seat.
There is no substitute for driving on a street with real cars and real trafic. It was an accident, one that any nervous inexperienced driver can make. Even young adults make this type of mistake when they drive.
QE137
It is highly likely that you did not read the article upon which you are commenting.
I wonder why they have the ages to get the licenses at 15 & 6months and 16 &3months..seems really strange and ridiculous to me. I'd like to know the reasoning behind that.
my thoughts exactly.
Mornin' Scooter...
Because down south the roads are usually long runs with a lot of farming. The kids are usually driving on the family farm with equipment etc...
Here in NJ, the roads are totally packed tight with vehicles. Kids cannot get their permit until 16 1/2 and their license at 17. This is what I heard anyway....
Can anyone down south help out a little here?
Definitely think the driving age should be raised to 18 for most parts of the country, especially the cities/suburbs.
Rural/Farms whole different story though....
Creek Dog--
I'm in Georgia and it was 15 and 16, respectively. Of course, I don't live near farm country and didn't see any kids on tractors in the middle of the road so I may not be the best person to ask. I've always wondered about the 15 3/4-type rules myself. Sounds childish to celebrate your 15 3/4 birthday with a driver's license. I dunno..
I started driving at 14, just straight and level to the dump and back. Nowadays I see children as young as 8-ish driving quads all the time.
In California, you get a permit at 15 1/2 and a license at 16. But to do so, you must take the official course in school, not be taught by a parent.
NJ is 16 for a permit and the permit is only given to the student after 6 hours with a accredited driving school & enrollment in your school's class. In fact, the driving school takes the student to the DMV to take the permit test. At 17 the student can apply for the provisional license, usually again with the driving school (1 hour re-fresher course). At 18 they can have a full license.
In Virginia you have to hold your permit for 9 months at least. So if you get your permit at 15 and 6 months, you'll have your license in 9 months when you turn 16 and 3 months. Seems a bit young to get a license as I didn't get my VA license until I turned 19.
I got my VA License at 16 something, probably shouldn't have though when you look at my drinving record around those younger years.
Where I live you can get your learners (G1) at 16 and you can only drive with someone who has had their full license for 4 years ( You also cant have any alcohol in your system of drive between 12 and 5 am). You can go for your road test after 1 yr (or 8 months if you take drivers ed). When you pass that you get your G2 (which has restrictions like if youre a teen you can only have one passengers between 12 and 5 and after 6 months you can have 3). After a year you can go for your road test for your full license which has no real restrictions other than if youre 21 you cant have any alcohol in your system. The drinking age in most of Canada is 19 so I think the restrictions cut down on all the tom foolery that some Americans who are worried about all the young drinking adults might get into....even though they can live on their own,are allowed to vote, and go to war...
LOL! Same here, makessense-7131188.
I did the same thing as Hannah and waited until I was 17 to get my VA license.
in Texas my daughter is taking "Drivers ED" from my husband (remember they don't do this in schools anymore) She'll take her driving instruction and test through the driving school here.
15 and a half? 16 and 3 months?......who thinks up this nonesense?
State legislators.
The 15.5 number has been there for decades. I think the 16.25 number is more recent. As stated above, the rule now is that you hold your learner's permit for a minimum of 9 months. I think it used to be 6.
It was 6 months for permit to license transition up until around 1999? They made the change a couple years after I got my license.
Nope when I was 15 it was 15 years and 3 months to get a permit and FLAT 16 to get your license. That was in 1984. Now, they may have raised the age for a learner's to 15 1/2 and for a short time had a 6 month wait before you can get the license, but it's been more like 9 months for the entire time I've lived in VA (and we moved here in 1980)
In 1997 in VA it was 15 or 15 and 6 months to get a learner's permit, depending on grades. You had to have your learner's for at least 9 months and be a minimum of 16 to get a full license, so if you had better grades and got your learner's earlier, you actually had more legal practice before you got a full license.
Got licensed years ago, after driving farm tractors. First day in driver's ed I made my first acquaintance with power brakes! Just about stood that car on its nose - just trounced down like I did on those old and worn out tractor brakes. Quite embarrassing.
Parents should not be allowed to teach their kids. They should have to pass a licensed driver's ed class.
I grew up in Virginia...you DO have to pass a licensed driver's ed class; however, as a part of getting your license you still need to log a certain number of "practice" hours with a licenesed driver over the age of 18.
When I got my driver's license in Washington state - it was 15 and a half to get learner's permit. That gave you 6 months to complete driver's eduction and get practical experience before you could get your license at 16. I still had to take driver's ed even though I had got my license on Guam at 16.
In Michigan you can begin driver's training at 14 years 9 months and get the license at 16 years of age. Also, you must log 40 hours of daytime driving and 10 hours of night time training, with a licensed driver, in addition to the driver's education driving. Only people I know that would qualify for that (in our insured vehicles) is me and mt wife. So, parents DO have to teach their kids to drive.
I took my son to a parking lot at first. But, there are kids running between cars, other cars backing out, cars cutting across parking lanes, etc. It was WAY more dangerous than being in a residential area. Not sure of any parking lots that are abandoned.
I feel for the parents of the kids that got hit and it's a bad situation. But I think the parents of the driver were doing the right thing. It's an unfortunate accident created by an inexperienced driver. Could have happened anywhere no matter how desolate the area seemed.
Blatant classicism. Many would say racist as it would discriminate against those who can't afford to enroll their children in a "Licensed Driver's Ed class". Most around here have to wait till Sr. High to get DE, and most the times those programs aren't "Licensed", it's just the coach letting kids drive.
In NC, you can take driver's ed at 14 1/2. It is offered through the schools by licensed driving schools and no fee is charged to take the class. If you take driver's ed you can get your permit at 15 and license at 16. The license is restricted - can't drive other kids, can't drive at night except under special circumstances, such as to a job.
who is the many that would say its racist? come on, really? I think parents should be allowed to teach their kids but how is taking certified lessons upper class? dont bring race into everything. is it racist to make drs go to medical school? as a minority Im offended by your ignorance.
The people who would say this is racist are the same people who say that it is racist to require a photo-ID to vote. They can't get a free photo id because they can't make it to the DMV because they are too poor, and Poor means minority to them.
A lot of public schools conduct after school drivers education at no cost to the student or parent. I made sure my kids attended this class and also took them to practice in an empty parking lot on weekends. Once they got a handle on things, we would go to the least travelled road I could find and work up from there. I wouldn't let them get their permit or license unless they passed that class.
In VA you actually have to have a certain number of hours practice with your folks before you are able to sign up for the classes, or at least that's how it was when I was 15.
I agree with wiseone and if VA they have to practices (it doesn't say folks ) someone over 18.They should change that it is better to go to the class read practice then drive with school drivers ed teacher (and ya! it could be a coach) I am going to agree with other's in different states it does cost, But that is what after school jobs are for. I think all kids love there parents but, I wouldn't want to be in the car with them. So that is what maybe they should change. And a little hard work didn't hurt any child it should make them proud. They did it ! And the parents should teach them that as well. Just Saying
In Illinois, you have to have taken the driver's education course at school and then, if you PAY for behind the wheel training, your child is allowed to get their license at 16. Theoretically, there are 8 spots for behind the wheel education available at the high school itself. They say it's by lottery, but I notice all the "connected" kids are the ones that "win." Regardless of whether or not your child gets actual behind the wheel training, the school socks you for an extra $135.00.
Because I wouldn't pay actual money to someone I didn't know to teach my child the behind the wheel portion of learning to drive, she couldn't get her license until she was 17 years and 3 months old. (Who *does* think this stuff up?) And she could only get her license if she had documented evidence of 50 hours of behind the wheel driving with a licensed driver. So we waited. Our insurance rate is better because she's older and she is a much better driver for having to listen to my "everyone on this road is trying to kill you" speech.
To true.... All that needs to be said is the whole "Everyone is trying to kill you on the road".. So true.. At least the United States hasn't turned into russia where everyone has a dash-cam cause of the lawsuits.
Empty parking lot. My "kids" are 18 and don't even have permits. That is where I'm taking them till I think they can go on the street. One is too timid and the other is too distracted.
How horrible, for all involved.
Training in a parking lot alone is not the answer. You can practive in one till your 90 and still have an accident. You can't get much less traveled then a cul-de-sac. This was an accident. Get over it and move on if your not involved directly.
when you teach your kid how to drive you go waaaaay out in the country where there is nothing around. thats what i do. out in the hay Field is good.
You still need to teach your kid to drive in real-life situations. Only teaching them how to drive when there's no other cars around is not going to do a lick of good for them when it comes to defensive driving and being aware of their surroundings.
Dumb little girl..... Jeeze
plus, if you are training in a parking lot while the business is closed, they can have you cited for trespassing. It happened to my daughter and I when I was teaching her... Thanks Wells Fargo!
This wouldn't have happened if we just banned cars.
No need to ban them, just license their ownership.
Well if you're trying to make a feeble attempt to take a swing at gun control here you go, stupid people shouldn't be allowed to drive a car or own a weapon. It's a fact, most who feel the need to carry an automatic weapon aren't that bright to begin with. They either shoot themselves or some other r3tard, some bunch you are! By the way, 11B, what's your MOS? Now bl0w me, stupid!
I live in California amongst lots of agricultural land. I learned to drive on desolate country roads and empty orchards. I wonder if there was any place more practical for the young driver to learn than in a residential community...
Hell I was driving on the farm at the age 12...drove to school at 15 even though legally I should have been 16...LOL Country folk have it made...=)
My dad taught me to drive when I was about 13, on abandoned streets that used to be a WWII hospital compound... then I was allowed to drive on vacations, etc. but ONLY with mom or dad with me... In HS, I did take drivers ed, only because their auto insurance would have a discount... I'm now 69, and ' knock on wood', have never had an accident or been ticketed, other than once for a red light violation, and another time for speeding one night. So this father with his kid was doing what he should have done, and this was an unfortunate situation...
I grew up in the Austin Suburbs but we had access to some areas that were more industrial and lightly traveled to start learning to drive on "the open road". My mother drove me to the area though! But the article doesn't say this was the kid's first time behind the wheel. Hopefully the children heal up and the student driver gets some better lessons.
I got my learners permit at 15 1/2 and my license on my 16th birthday. Now 58 yrs later no movings violations or accidents. I have driven all over the USA, Canada, Europe, Vietnam, Australia and Central and South America. I learned to drive first in the parking lot of Ford Motor Company in Richmond Calif ande rest on the public roads. I was taught above all to be defensivie never offensive.
My Dad grew up in rural Arkansas, in the 50's and 60's. They drove at early ages, don't know if they still do. When it came time to get licenses, they just plunked down cash at the local pharmacy, no lessons or test required.
When I first drove, I was around 11 (my Dad though it was unfair we didn't get to do the things he did growing up because we don't live in a rural area...yeah, I don't agree with that either. At least in this particular case). I drove through our local neighborhood (Long Beach, CA), home from the grocery store. When I got a bit better, I was allowed to drive on the bigger streets. I received my learners permit at 15, and my permanent license at 16. I took drivers ed. in high school as well as drivers training, no cost involved. In fact, at the time, you didn't even need insurance.
Funny thing is, I have ONE ticket in almost 35 years of driving. Sometimes I wonder if it's because I had been driving carefully, underage, for so long?
My son, well, he's been told, since he was small, "You'll have to wait to get your license till you're 18" and that he must take a drivers training course (our schools no longer offer these courses). The license restrictions are ridiculous here in CA, so he doesn't mind. He's got a car already, but he's a few years away.
Stupid parents have stupid kids!! There should be an IQ test before allowing anyone to have kids, no wonder the world is full of effing morons!! I hope the other dummies sue the living pants out of that stupid father, he deserves to live off trash cans.
Some people are so ignorant! the story does not say that this was the first driving lesson! Kids need to learn how to drive on the street eventually, so this teen may have had many lessons in a parking lot before this. It was a very unfortunate accident and the teen is probably traumatized as well. For those of you who chose to put down the teen and her parent, perhaps you should think of how you would have felt if this were you! As for Joe, if this area is "trashburn" and you live there, you're in the right place!