A car stolen from Mount Maunganui is one of the vehicles Hamilton police say was used by underage drivers in a demolition derby near Hamilton on Tuesday morning.
'Officers were called to the area of O'Regan and Collins Roads after reports of a group of cars doing burnouts,” says Senior Sergeant Pete Van De Wetering.
'Arriving, they came across a Mitsubishi car with three boys aboard trying to return to Hamilton.
'The driver originally pulled over, but as the constable got out of his car to speak to them he tried to accelerate away, but the engine had been that thrashed he didn't get very far.”
A Hyundai Accent 5-door hatchback, stolen overnight from Glenview, was found in a ditch nearby while a Honda Ascot stolen from Mount Maunganui was also found in a nearby paddock, says Pete.
One of the three 14 and 15 year old youths arrested on O'Regan Road at about 6am, Tuesday, had already been arrested and returned home overnight.
'The cars all had various amounts of damage,” says Pete.
'It appears the boys had been using them in an amateur demolition derby, which is of particular concern for us in that this was being done on a public road.
'Already this week police and motoring experts have highlighted the risks of underage drivers.
'They simply don't have the motor or cognitive skills to react to situations that occur on the road.
'Inexperienced drivers have already accounted for nine deaths in the Waikato this year.”
The arrest of the three youths, who are all being referred to Youth Aid, was only possible because members of the public made the effort to notify police of their suspicious behaviour.
'And that's the key message to get out there, if you see something amiss, ring
111 so police can investigate what's going on, in this case it led to three arrests and the recovery of three cars.”
6 comments
Responsibility
Posted on 14-12-2010 13:29 | By maggiebop
Why were the parents not held responsible for their offsprings total disrespect of both people and property? As well as locking up these idiots!
.....delinquents...
Posted on 14-12-2010 14:20 | By Local
...That's it rap them on the knuckles and send them home...they will be over in the Bay stealing cars again before we know it. I have taken the law into my own hands once before about a similar situation, and they never bothered me again, and I wouldn't think twice about doing it again.... kids these days need a beating once in a while, and maybe this country should consider National Service as well.......
hooligans
Posted on 14-12-2010 15:28 | By joy atkinson
what can you expect? There is no dicipline these days, they can get away with murder! These kids know they can do anything and get a slap on the wrist from the authorities for their efforts, they have no respect for other folk's property. Give the parents a "rev up" make them pay for their kid's way of life then things could change Alternitively National Service .(cadets) or boot camp for them, wake up their ideas a bit.
Boot camp not the answer
Posted on 14-12-2010 18:05 | By morepork
As one of the last to actually DO National Service in this country, it bothers me when people see it as a means to "discipline" errant youth. The days when the Army accepted the scum of the earth as cannon fodder are long over. There IS a discipline problem but you don't solve it by abnegating responsibility for it and handing it to the Army. Discipline begins at home and should be reinforced by co-operation between home and school. Discipline is NOT about punishment, it is about recognising responsibilities at all ages, and is an essential ingredient for growing children, decent communities and good citizens. The ONLY effective discipline is SELF-Discipline, and children don't lick that off the stones. They need role models and examples from parents, whanau, extended family, and teachers, not from Drill Sergeants. Army discipline can save soldiers lives in extreme situations but it isn't what underage joy-riders need. Parents must be made to take responsibility for their offspring and pay for any damage done by them. Until we see parents shaping up it is just unrealistic and silly to expect their kids to do so. On the eve of the Battle of Waterloo, the Duke of Wellington surveyed the villainous rabble he had been given as "soldiers". His comment was:"I don't know what they'll do to the Enemy, but they scare the Hell out of me." Since then the Army has striven to become a professional fighting body and we can be proud of the young men and women who serve in our armed forces. They have serious study and duty to do, don't waste their time with the likes of these uncared for, unsupervised kids. Target the parents; that is the root of the problem.
Parents & kids mistakes!
Posted on 14-12-2010 18:21 | By heather
Sadly kids that age are more than capable of defying their parents...go off to bed at night and sneak out the window....parents sleep on totally oblivious. Two families I know have been woken by a policeman's knock on the door to say little Johnny/ Little Debbie has been killed. Parents say "impossible there is a mistake,my child is safely in their bed"...Sadly it was not the case. Imagine the feelings of those poor parents. Once children reach a certain age they need to be responsible for their own actions and face the consequences of any wrong doing. No matter how hard you try to be a good parent and raise great kids, sometimes things go wrong and they run wild for a time. Yes parents need to take their role seriously but paying for their kids disobedience....that's tough. What will doing that (punishing the parents) teach the kids????
Response to Heather
Posted on 15-12-2010 16:09 | By morepork
If the discipline I spoke of is in place, you WON'T have kids climbing out the window to wreak mayhem. You are saying that kids are simply out of control. How did they get that way? Kids raised in a loving environment with mutual respect, open communication, and well defined lines (discipline) generally don't WANT to bring shame and regret to their parent's doorstep. (Or on themselves, for that matter...) They KNOW what is right (for them)and they are not afraid to draw their own lines. Fortunately I see many such kids in our community; they aren't ALL out joyriding at night. It comes down to personal values and those values arise (initially) from the home. "Once children reach a certain age they need to be responsible for their own actions and face the consequences of any wrong doing." Yes, we can certainly agree on that, but they need to see that even before that time, their actions have consequences for other people and responsibility has to be taken for it. To answer your final question: 1. Parents are (and should be) responsible for the actions of their children (until these kids are old enough to be held responsible themselves, legally). They therefore must make reparation for damage caused by them, just as they would if the family pet caused damage to someone. 2. Making parents pay, is not about "punishing" the parents. It is simply right that responsibility must be taken and damage done must be rectified as far as it can be. This is an example to kids (and, sometimes, parents...) that actions have consequences. So long as actions DON'T have consequences we will continue to see the chaos we are seeing at the moment, with offenders going scot free and no-one being responsible for bad behaviour. It really ISN'T about punishment, Heather. SOMEBODY has to take responsibility or we ALL go to Hell in a hand cart... I know it isn't easy. Parenting never is, but kids don't ask to be born and growing up is not always an easy time for parents and children alike. Parents who feel their kids are out of control should seek help immediately. Mostly, it shouldn't come to that.
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