13-year-old boy caught driving with father present in car tells JPJ he had ‘no choice’ because father was unwell – paultan.org

Driving by minors without a license, which is more common than you think, is usually the result of vehicles being taken on joyrides without the knowledge of the vehicle owner, and sometimes there is even the latter’s consent, but what if there is something else going on, such as the presence of a guardian in the vehicle itself?

Such a case occurred in Kedah last week, when a 13-year-old boy was caught driving a car – with his father in the passenger seat of the vehicle – during an enforcement operation by the Road Transport Department (JPJ) in Kulim. Malaysian Post reports.

According to Kedah JPJ director Stien Van Lutam, the boy was driving a Perodua Kancil when he was stopped along Jalan Sungai Seluang at about 12.45pm on March 5 during an operation carried out by the Sungai Petani JPJ branch. Checks revealed that the boy did not have a valid driver’s license as he was under the legal age to obtain one, an offense under section 39(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987.

The boy’s response to enforcement officers about the matter was that he had ‘no choice’ but to drive because his father was unwell and had to run an errand. He was issued a summons for underage driving, while his father was also fined by JPJ. Checks showed that the vehicle, which had not been seized, had a valid road tax.

Although nothing untoward happened in this particular case, allowing underage individuals to get behind the wheel of a vehicle can have serious – and fatal – consequences. Last week, The star reported that a woman who allowed her 17-year-old son to drive her car, who was later involved in an accident that claimed three lives, was fined RM1,500 by the magistrate in Seremban.

In the traffic incident, the suspect’s son ran a red light and then crashed into two motorcycles, killing three teenagers aged 15, 16 and 17. The boy initially demanded a trial when he was first charged with reckless driving on April 22 last year, but changed his plea to guilty in December and will be sentenced in May, pending a welfare report.

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