A Durham Regional Police vehicle is pictured. (Tom Stefanac / CP24)
Durham Regional Police say they started investigating on May 31 after being made aware of several videos on social media showing the toddler steering the car from the woman’s lap, as she drove at a “high rate of speed.” Neither she nor the child had any seatbelts or safety restraints, authorities said in the statement released on Monday.
The mother also filmed the scenario on her cellphone. Police were able to identify the suspect, Durham police said, but her name is being withheld to protect the identity of the child. Children’s Aid Society is aware of the incident.
The 33-year-old, from Beaverton, Ont., was charged with: a parent not providing necessities of life, two counts of careless driving, two counts of a driver failing to wear a seatbelt, two counts of driving while a child isn’t properly secured and driving while using a handheld communications device.
A 33-year-old Beaverton mother is facing charges after she drove her vehicle on the highway with her three-year-old daughter on her lap allowing her to steer the vehicle https://t.co/kBnE6kECB5 pic.twitter.com/8abk795hgv
— DurhamRegionalPolice (@DRPS) June 11, 2018
Source: CTV News