Sheriff: Parents to be notified of teens' DPS stops

04:37 PM Mountain Standard Time on Monday, May 7, 2007

By Kim Kapilovic / 3TV producer

The sheriff's department said there's a new plan in place for cracking down on teenage drivers.

If teens get pulled over by a deputy and they don't tell their parents, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said he will tell.Teen drivers busted by deputies and hoping to keep it from their parents won't have that option anymore.

The sheriff's department said in an effort to help young drivers become safe drivers, it's going to start notifying their parents when they commit a traffic violation.

"As a mother of three boys, I think it's a very good idea," Karen Deadrick said. "I have actually one son who is going into the Army and called me at the last minute and said, 'Go pay my traffic ticket that I got like a year and a half ago.'"

Parents can expect to be notified by mail even if their teen only got a warning.

"I think the parents should be aware of the kids' driving capacity out there," said Barbara Hadden, a parent.

Parent Lori Hardin said she thinks it's a great idea.

"…I don't mind. I think it's great that they're trying to make our city more safe," she said.

Dan Bedgood, a parent, said he thinks it's probably a reasonable approach because it may save a kid's life.

Car crashes are the leading cause of death among teenagers.

The sheriff's department is hoping the letters will create a dialogue between parent and child about drive habits.

"The parents will know what their sons and daughters are doing and if they can talk to their child about it they might give them good advice and they won't do it again because then we tend to do it over again if nothing happens," said Ivan Lopez, a teen driver.

The new program started today.
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