Published: July 03, 2008 10:17 pm      

Police: Mom drove ATV drunk; 3-year-old critical

State Police say a Raleigh County woman had been drinking when she wrecked an ATV with her three-year-old son on board last weekend.

Charges are pending against the woman in her mid-20s from the Dry Creek/Naoma area, Senior Trooper J.L. Howell said. Her name was not released.

Around 7:30 p.m. last Saturday, the woman and members of her family were camping and fishing around Peachtree Road in Naoma and people were taking turns riding a 1999 full-size Honda ATV, Howell said. The woman decided to take her young son for a ride. The boy sat in front of her, on the seat.

While going through a straight stretch on a gravel road, the woman lost control and hit a ditch, causing the ATV to flip, Howell said. Neither she nor the child was wearing a helmet.

Howell said the woman admitted she had been drinking. Also, her eyes were bloodshot and her speech was slurred.

The child was taken to Raleigh General Hospital, then to Charleston Area Medical Center by ground ambulance, Howell said. A HealthNet helicopter was requested, but weather conditions in the area were too hazardous.

As of Wednesday night, the child was in critical condition in CAMC’s intensive care unit, Howell said. The boy sustained a skull fracture, brain damage and total vision loss in one eye.

The mother sustained minor injuries. She was treated and released at Raleigh General Hospital Saturday night, Howell said. Police must subpoena hospital records before finding out her blood alcohol content.



The accident was reported three days after a 6-year-old girl was injured in Fayette County. Authorities said she was riding on an ATV with her father.

According to U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission guidelines, no child younger than 6 should be on an ATV, either as the driver or a passenger. The commission also recommends no child younger than 16 be on board an ATV with an engine larger than 90 cubic centimeters.

Howell strongly recommended use of helmets while riding ATVs. He said he has handled ATV accidents involving serious injury and/or death that would have been far less serious had the riders been wearing helmets.

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