11-year-old boy takes parents' car onto highway after GTA V gaming session

midian182

Posts: 9,632   +120
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Last weekend, an incident took place that, unfortunately, some may use as fuel for the ‘video games corrupt young minds’ argument: an 11-year-old boy was caught driving down Ontario’s Highway 400 after a night of playing Grand Theft Auto V.

“Drivers called it in thinking it was probably an impaired driver, because the vehicle was all over the highway,” said Sgt. Kerry Schmidt in a video posted on the Ontario Provincial Police’s (OPP) Twitter Page.

An OPP officer attempted to pull the car over. “The vehicle was first… going under the speed limit – like about half the speed limit,” Schmidt said. “As the officer tried to get out and talk to this driver, find out what was going on… the vehicle took off again.”

With the boy now driving at close to 75mph, a second officer was called. They were able to box the car in and bring it to a rolling stop, at which point the police discovered it was an 11-year-old behind the wheel.

The officers asked the boy why he had decided to take his parents’ vehicle out for a spin. “(He) had just been finishing playing Grand Theft Auto at home and wanted to find out what it was like driving a car,” said Schmidt. Turns out Mom and Dad were sleeping when their son went on his joyride.

Luckily, no one was hurt as a result of the boy’s actions. The police took him home and towed back the car. No charges are being brought. “He’s only eleven years old,” Schmidt said. “We’re leaving it up to the parents to determine what an appropriate punishment would be.”

Sadly, there will likely be some anti-gamers who place the blame completely on GTA V rather than the parents, despite the fact that it is rated M for Mature (17-years-old and over). But, as anyone who has played an online Call of Duty match will tell you, these age restrictions are often ignored.

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If parents were spanking their children instead of just giving into their infantile whims, you'd have children with a healthy respect for adult authority and a sense of consequences.

If that "kid" had hit and killed someone - or wrecked another car - then what?

The parents should be sued - by the state - for any damages incurred. Then they'll know better.

I hope their insurance premiums skyrocket.
 
Guidance from authority, in this case - parents, has always been an absolute must for children since the dawn of man. Now with so much media bombardment from external stimulus with mostly negative influence, that guidance is more important than ever.
 
I agree the parents should be held responsible. Seriously, who lets their 11 year old child play GTA? Or any other similar type of game? Sounds like they have a lot to teach little Johnny. I'm glad no one got hurt.

The whole recommended age crap is stupid too.... just a substitute for poor parenting, which isn't even being utilized. A teenager should be allowed to play these games based on their maturity level, not their age. Hell, there are some "adults" who shouldn't be playing GTA.
 
I agree the parents should be held responsible. Seriously, who lets their 11 year old child play GTA? Or any other similar type of game? Sounds like they have a lot to teach little Johnny. I'm glad no one got hurt.

I played and viewed worse by age 7 and didn't go about breaking the law or endangering people.

If handing your kid a copy of GTA V at age 11 motivates him to reenact the OJ Simpson chase, you've got at least 10 years of complete failure as a parent and 1 instance of irrefutable proof of that failure.
 
Age has nothing to do with this. Just a long line of horrible parenting that never taught their children actions and consequences. I grow up on a farm and we certainly knew not to drive a car on the highway. The back 40 was alright though :D
 
So he play playing GTA unsupervised where basically all you do is kill people, sleep with hookers and steal stuff oh and blow everything up.

Then clearly no bed time or curfew since he decided to take the car for a spin just after playing, assuming late at night then.

This article should be titled "Worst parenting ever" and all references to GTA should be removed, I hate how games/movies/etc gets the bad rep when really its parents not disciplining their children.
 
How can parents parent, when the State is always threatening to jail you and take your kids away for parenting?
The masses, including myself and most everyone else, manages to do it. The level of characteristics for acceptable child rearing is very low, if you feel your rights as being able to parent your child are being infringed, I would say that it is very possible you are doing it in very ineffective (and possibly harmful) manner.
 
If parents were spanking their children instead of just giving into their infantile whims, you'd have children with a healthy respect for adult authority and a sense of consequences.

If that "kid" had hit and killed someone - or wrecked another car - then what?

The parents should be sued - by the state - for any damages incurred. Then they'll know better.

I hope their insurance premiums skyrocket.
That would be province since we, in Canada, do not have states lol

Otherwise, why mention the video game? Should highlight the fact that the parents were irresponsible...
 
As for people claiming: "the state took our rights"....no it didn't.

the problem is that you can SPANK your child, but you can't BEAT your child.

If your child has done something egregious - like stealing or bullying, you are 100% able to spank your child.

I think the problem is the method: to which I reply a leather belt, the back of a hand, a shoe, an electrified whip, a board with a nail in it...etc... should all be fair game.

You basically need to beat em till you're tired and then tell them you love them.

Now you can't make them go to bed without food - that's cruel. But an epic whuppin will be more than enough to make them lose their appetite.

Put the fear of God into em early on and you'll never have to worry.

I'm 35 and I'm terrified to talk back to my mom. I'm taller and I'm bigger and I'd never challenge either of my parents.

And my dad just got a CCW permit and a .38 S&W.
 
If parents were spanking their children instead of just giving into their infantile whims, you'd have children with a healthy respect for adult authority and a sense of consequences.

If that "kid" had hit and killed someone - or wrecked another car - then what?

The parents should be sued - by the state - for any damages incurred. Then they'll know better.

I hope their insurance premiums skyrocket.

Yes, let's ruin the lives of everyone involved over nothing. When I was a kid, things like this happened all the time and the the parents, along with the community, helped discipline children. We all grew up fine without criminal records (thank God). I commend the officers for not overreacting as well.

I know this will just invite millennials to just start ranting so
God bless you...now go F#8k yourself. ;-)
 
Parents that dont deserve to have kids and also millenials who think they are untouchables and a lot of self-entitlement. These are the cancers in the society we will see a lot.
 
Yes, let's ruin the lives of everyone involved over nothing. When I was a kid, things like this happened all the time and the the parents, along with the community, helped discipline children. We all grew up fine without criminal records (thank God). I commend the officers for not overreacting as well.

I know this will just invite millennials to just start ranting so
God bless you...now go F#8k yourself. ;-)



I think it's time the "entitlement generation" took a beatin'.

the "NO" and the hard slap in the mouth begins with "Trump's inauguration and the theme song is: "You Can't Always Get What You Want".
 
I waited til I was 15 to take the car out and I didn't need GTA to spur me on. I took my Mom's FURY 3 out to Woodward Ave and raced my buddy who also had a Fury 3. It was at 6 AM after we got off work. What the hell is youth for if not to do stupid things
 
Now you can't make them go to bed without food - that's cruel. But an epic whuppin will be more than enough to make them lose their appetite.

Put the fear of God into em early on and you'll never have to worry.

Hogwash. As soon as I figured out the belt was the least time consuming punishment, it was easy street. This is until they figured out my strategy a few months later and dropped spanking in favor of restrictions.

Moreover, if this methodology actually worked, the black community would be a model demographic on account of its widespread use there. Yet, this is not the case. Far from it, in fact.*

"Smacking sense" into a child doesn't work (will provide sources later). It simply teaches them fear...which isn't particularly useful or cognitively beneficial. Case in point:

I'm 35 and I'm terrified to talk back to my mom.

Really, dude?

*Not racism.
 
There is no one way fits all when dealing with kids. Some are humble and will do everything asked of them. While others no matter what you do, they rebel. Everyone quick to point a finger at parents when they know little about the parents, is basically professing to a childhood of bad parenting. This could have been an impulse decision from a kid that otherwise was a model child. The police obviously thought it was worth giving the parents the benefit of doubt. Why are so many here not willing to do the same? Heck the police even knows more about the situation than we do.
 
I'm 35 and I'm terrified to talk back to my mom. I'm taller and I'm bigger and I'd never challenge either of my parents.
I remember back when I was single-digit old, I spoke back to my mom...that was the first and last time..yes it was. I can't even imagine talking back to my parents even now (or especially now). I don't think my mom would have an issue smacking me across the face even in-front of her or my friends; and it's not the pain, it's the embarrassment! LOL
 
The people who are "parents" to this kid don't seem to be doing parenting. Why is this kid even allowed to play this game?? He is way to young for it.
 
The people who are "parents" to this kid don't seem to be doing parenting. Why is this kid even allowed to play this game?? He is way to young for it.
Because among the games to play that rating is damn near all there is available. It is our short coming as parents, not their shortcoming, ours in allowing the general consensus of games being sold having adult rating. When the majority of games to be played has an adult rating, of course kids will be playing them. It is the markets fault [not the kids or parents] for people buying the only thing available. It is our sick minds as adults that create this market, and then we push the blame on others when it effects kids (absolutely appalling).
 
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