Santa Rosa Teen's Impromptu Driving Lesson Ends In Crash
SANTA ROSA (CBS SF) -- A driving lesson between teenagers left alone in a running car ended badly Friday with the vehicle slamming into a Santa Rosa apartment complex.
Santa Rosa police said they responded to a call reporting an injury collision of a person pinned between a vehicle and a building Friday afternoon at 4040 Hoen Ave.
When officers arrived at the collision scene, they noticed a red Kia Optima partially inside the northern wall of the apartment building. A 16-year-old girl was trapped in between the driver's side door and the body of the vehicle.
The Santa Rosa Fire Department rushed to the scene and extricated the girl. She was transported to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, where she was treated for her non life-threatening injuries.
Investigators said the girl's mother had left her daughter and a family friend in the vehicle while she went to visit another friend at the apartment complex.
The mother left the vehicle in park, but running at the time. The family friend, a 14-year-old boy, got into the driver's seat of the vehicle and the 16-year-old was standing inside the driver's side door, teaching him about the vehicle's controls.
Somehow, the boy put the vehicle in gear and stepped on the accelerator. The girl was trapped in between the driver's side door and the body of the vehicle and was dragged until the vehicle crashed into the building.
Drugs and alcohol were not considered to be factors in the collision. The boy was issued a complaint citation for driving unlicensed on private property.