BOUTTE, La. – An 11-year-old boy led police on a chase that reached speeds of more than 100 mph, leading to charges for him and his parents, who are accused of letting him drive for months, state police said.
Leona M. Calloway, 32, and Rodney Brown, 46, were charged with improper supervision of a minor and allowing an unlicensed minor to drive. Officials booked the boy, who was not identified because of his age, with felony flight from an officer, reckless driving, speeding, passing on the shoulder, improper lane usage and having no driver's license.
Neither the parents nor the boy were jailed, and the child was released to the custody of an aunt, said state police spokesman Joseph Piglia. The parents' phone rang unanswered Saturday.
The chase started at 6:30 a.m. Friday on Interstate 310 on the outskirts of New Orleans when a state trooper recorded a sport utility vehicle going 80 mph in a 60-mph zone, Piglia said.
The trooper turned on his lights and siren and tried to stop the driver, but the boy accelerated, passing several other vehicles on the shoulder and forcing cars off the road, according to state police.
Finally, the boy turned off the interstate and drove to a Burger King restaurant where his mother worked.
State police said the boy was driving home to Boutte from a hospital in Kenner after dropping off his disabled father for an appointment. He had been driving his father around for six months, authorities said.
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