NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) - A drunk father allegedly allowed his 8 year-old son to drive his pick-up truck on a southeast Louisiana highway on S...
The boy was driving the Chevrolet truck on Interstate 12 near the town of Holden, with his father in the passenger seat and his 4 year-old sister in the back seat, Louisiana State Police said in a statement.
A passing motorist noticed the pick-up truck was being driven erratically and called police.
When Louisiana state troopers pulled over the truck in Livingston Parish, they found the 8 year-old boy behind the wheel and interviewed the father, 28 year-old Billy Joe Madden of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, police said.
Police said they determined Madden was drunk and that he had been sleeping while his son drove the vehicle, en-route to Dallas, Texas.
Madden was arrested and booked into jail on two counts of child desertion, parent allowing a minor to drive, open container and two counts of no child restraint and no seatbelt.
Madden remains in jail at Livingston Parish Detention Center in lieu of $1,474 bail, said sheriff'sdeputy Dustin Sanders at the facility.
Both of Madden's children were turned over to child welfare authorities and were awaiting the arrival of a family member who could take custody of them, police said.
(Reporting by Kathy Finn; Writing by Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Tim Gaynor)
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