People in Ohio know that at some point, teenagers need to learn how to drive. However, it is reasonable to be concerned about handing over the keys to a young person who may be impetuous and too immature to fully grasp their own mortality and the need to operate a vehicle safely. Too many accidents have involved teenage drivers, at least some of which may have been preventable by safer driving practices.
While several details remain unknown at this time, it appears that some lack of safe operation may have contributed to a crash that happened recently involving two teenage boys. As reported by the Mansfield News Journal, only one vehicle was involved in the incident and it was being driven by a boy who is only 17 years old. The passenger in the vehicle was another boy who is only 14 years old.
The young driver has been cited for failing to control his vehicle but what exactly that means is unclear. At approximately 7:30 p.m. on a weekday evening on the way home from football practice, the teen’s vehicle left the roadway along a stretch of Ohio 603. After hitting a pole, the vehicle proceeded to rollover multiple times, throwing the driver from the car. He had not been wearing a seatbelt. His injuries include several broken bones from his back to his pelvis and his ribs.
The 14-year-old was wearing a seatbelt and was also injured but specifics on his condition were not released. It is also not known what the relationship between the boys was.