7-yr-old killed riding quad bike ON UNLIT ROAD AFTER DARK!!!

[WendyWeber]

What were they thinking of???

I imagine the poor driver was arrested as a matter of routine in a fatal road accident. Doesn't mean she is to blame.

Horrible that her father thought she was OK so she didn't receive medical attention immediately. Good Lord, how is he ever going to cope with the responsibility?

Apparently the speed limit on that road was 60 mph . Just awful.

Maybe she wasn't taken to A&E at the time because he knew she shouldn't have been on the road...

agreed Hulababy!

I just told ds1 (10) that two children aged 7 and 10 had been given quad bikes for Christmas and had been out on a public road riding them after dark. And he was horrified and said the parents should be put in prison as it was so dangerous.

This was before he learned that there had been a fatal accident.

If a ten-yr-old knows it's illegal and dangerous, surely any reasonable adult should be able to work it out.

This is so so sad.

Should they be charged with negligence? Perhaps.

After all, if a drunk driver or merely a careless one killed your child and was absolutely broken by that fact, would you say s/he'd been punished enough? I don't see that this is any different.

You think that killing an anonymous child is the same as killing your own from the point of view of how bad you'd feel??? You're mad.

No, I don't obviously. But the level of criminal negligence is the same and why should one offender be prosecuted but the other not simply because their guilt is compounded by their relationship to the deceased?

Freckle - I agree with you and feel that driving while under the influence of drink or drugs should be punished to a similar degree as causing death while under the influence...

Parents' poor assessment of risk is another thing - if the child had been riding a bicycle would you call for the parents' prosecution? If a child got hold of some of Dad's medication and overdosed would you want the parents locked up? That is almost certainly illegal too.

I think I read that the range rover driver had given negative samples and had been released without charge

But the fact remains that the parents - who are the legal responsible adult I presume - allowed thier child to carry out an illegal act - riding a quad bike on a public road. And riding a bike is not illegal so not the same.

What if we take this one step further? A child dies through its parents' negligence, whether on the road or because they were left home alone at a young age. Should all parents escape prosecution because their grief is so great that it renders unnecessary any other form of punishment?

Take the law regarding the age at which a parent can leave children home alone. Except that there isn't one, other than the consequences of any injury befalling that child if it was foreseeable, i.e. the parents being held negligent. If the parents in this case escape prosecution because of the depth of their grief, then any parent can expect to be left unprosecuted because their grief is likely to be of a similar depth. Which is dangerous because it removes responsibility for the care of a child from its parents.

"Apparently the speed limit on that road was 60 mph"

That is the usual limit for all such lanes. I know this area quite well and there are a number of single track lanes like this one around here. There is absolutely no room for anything other than one car travelling in any one direction on these particular roads. Extreme care therefore must be used when travelling along them.

Essex Police breathalyse all drivers as standard policy after all road accidents.

Children of 7 (or 10 for that matter) usually have implicit trust in their parents' judgement, believing that they will be kept safe.

That's what I think is so sad about this story - two little children who must have been filled with excitement and joy at what can only be described as AMAZING presents.

Parents who couldn't say 'No' to the children's request to take the new toy out for a little ride - instead of staying on what must have been wet, muddy land the father made the crass error of judgement to allow them to ride on the road...

...the children would not have questioned this choice, which most people would NEVER have made.

And now, as a result of his decision the father has led his innocent child to her death.

No one needs to express an opinion on this, it's too obviously pathetic and stupid. But we do, because of the enormity of what he has done and our belief that we would never bring our own children into that kind of situation. But we all tread a fine line. I encourage my boys to play rugby - a perfectly legal activity. If one day one of them breaks his neck I will spend the rest of my life regretting my actions in allowing them to play.

And before anyone asks if I think that the only thing stopping a parent being negligent with their child's life is the threat of subsequent prosecution, no I don't. Of course I don't.

Prosecuting parents who are negligent does hopefully make other parents think twice before doing the same thing. Hindsight is a wonderful thing; think how much more wonderful if the possibly unforeseen consequences of a particular action can be shown in advance.

i fail to see where this became about judgement ...

as has been said, this is a terrible terrible tragedy and the guilt that the parents feel will haunt them for the rest of their lives, but the fact remains that it was avoidable

nothing can change what happened and nothing can bring the poor little girl back, however, lessons can and will be learned ... surely discussions on this (and media reporting) can only be a 'good' thing as this will become one of those things that parents who may have been teetering on allowing to happen will now think twice and overrule??

I know I will be shot down for this but...
The parents were/are brainless and should be prosecuted.
It is never ok to let a child ride a quad bike on a main road, a seven year old child is tiny, I know I have one, a quad bike is massive and powerful and NOT a toy.
Is is against the law for a child to be on the road on a quad bike.
I feel sorry for the driver of the car (the news said last night they had passed a breath test) I feel heartbroken that a little child that should be playing with Christmas gifts and eating too much chocolate is lying in a cold morgue today and all because of the stupidity of the very people who were meant to be responsible for her wellfare.

They have to live with what they have done I know, but I don't think they should get away with it.

Surely the whole point of the law is that it applies to everyone equally? IF the driver concerned HAD been under the influence of drugs/alcohol, then I doubt anyone would debate whether or not they should be prosecuted - they would be seen to be in the wrong. The fact is, the parents here DID act illegally by allowing children to ride quad bikes on a public highway. Freckle makes an excellent point:
"But the level of criminal negligence is the same and why should one offender be prosecuted but the other not simply because their guilt is compounded by their relationship to the deceased? "
The fact that the parents involved must be devastated is irrelevant to the legality of the situation.TBH, they are going to be devastated whether or not they are charged with any offence - I'm sure the depth of their grief is immense and prosecuting them won't make them feel any worse. But that wouldnt be the point of any possible charges anyway would it? The point would be to make it clear that laws are there for a reason, and to hopefully act as a deterrent for others.

So awful that this little girl lost her life, at the hands of more than one irresponsible adult...

Sorry but I have to add my feeling here.

I think that whilst no doubt those parents are suffering and yes, they have my profound pity, but nonetheless I believe they should be punished (not nec with a custodial sentence tho) for two key things here:

1. letting the children on the road with the bikes in the first place, and

2. not taking them both to A&E immediately after the accident.

Both actions are evidence of the most unbelievable level of negligence and stupidity, regardless of the criminality. Surely the first thing you'd do after your kid was in a collision with a car is take them to A&E? FFS this makes me

I can't help but judge at this because what happened here IMO was so totally avoidable.

Poor little girl, poor driver, and poor family.

OMG this is like Maddy MN deja vu for me. How anyone can, at a time like this, start laying into the parents is absolutely beyond me.

It's like you have no hearts sometimes.

"Surely the first thing you'd do after your kid was in a collision with a car is take them to A&E?"

Why so? I was once involved in a collision with a car, as a pedestrian, thankfully I was fine, all I had was a few cuts and bruises - and pretty shaken up, but my parents never considered taking me to A&E as by all intents and purposes I seemed (and in that case) was actually ok.

My DB got knocked off his bicycle aged about 13yrs old, he seemed fine too just generally sore.....except a day later we discovered he'd fractured his wrist! Again no trip was made to A&E after the accident as he appeared to be ok.

There have been numerous threads on MN from parents whose child has fallen downstairs, most don't take the child straight off to A&E if they generally seem ok.....but we all know the risk of concussion is very high with such accidents - not to mention internal injuries.....