Boys drive excavator at Pa. mine, smash bulldozer

[msb1766]

GREENSBORO, Pa. (AP) -- State police say two boys, ages 12 and 9, drove a large excavator at a southwestern Pennsylvania strip mine, smashing a bulldozer in the process.

Police say the 12-year-old will be charged with felony criminal mischief in Greene County Juvenile Court. The other boy is too young to be charged under Pennsylvania law.

Police say Ali Co. Excavating and Construction, of Kingwood, W.Va. has insurance for the mine site in Monongahela Township, but not the equipment that was damaged.

The boys caused $164,000 in damage - about $150,000 of it to the bulldozer. Police say the boys also emptied fire extinguishers in every vehicle on the site.

Police say the boys acknowledged causing the damage Thursday, saying they were bored.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

What the heck??? 9 & 12??? :confused3:

 

[chuckd1277]

There should be some charges for the parents too.

 

[scesnick]

Hmmm, Just wondering if the parents (especially of the 9yr old) ever even stopped to wonder where their child was and what he was doing?? most likely not...

 

[chopped]

keys in them or are they just smart enough to hot wire?Not an excuse but ...

 

[Deere Dude]

Why weren't they home playing video games like the rest of the teens.

 

[Chooglin]

Lack of parenting is what I think.

First off,I would never consider doing anything like that,at any age.my parents would set my butt on fire for alot lesser things.I just cant beleive the disrespect this generation has (NOT ALL) but a good many of them.I wish parents would start parenting again..................

 

[Thomas]

"saying they were bored."

Bet there not bored now...doing odd jobs.

 

[Markcuda]

Come on all you self riotous peeps, I would of done the same thing at their age.
And we didn't have video games in the 60s:laughing:

 

[Taylortractornut]

The parents should pay for it and the children shopuld pay for it with butt hide. Id hate the have been eitherkid if someontold my dad I damaged a machine like that.
I grew up around euipment and sometimes even large companies cant insure every machine especially pit machinery. Depending on the hoe the master switch was left on or keys in it. A friend mine was logging a section of beetle damaged pine a few years ago. He had a 518 Cat skidder with brush rake on it. He had the master switch off but some kids that had been around one of the recreation areas had seen somewhere that an old style Cat master switch can be tripped with needle nose pliers. My friend came in one morning and his skidder was gone and his trailer mounted knuckle boom and the pull out truck had been rolled over. When they couldnt shut the skidder off witch is a trick they left it in gear and jumped off with a pine block holding the throttle pedal down. It had gone throw some light brush and the last tooth o nthe rake snagged a pine stump and caused the machine to steer right and centered a large hickory. It spun down there and kept running till out of fuel.

It ruined 2 new high flotation forestry tires and a few other parts. If the machine hadnt hit the stump an turned it would have hit a full day care center. The 2 kids were caught on an infared game came my friend had put in one of his service skids for cathing fuel theives. The kids found the operators manual on the shidder that comes in the plastic bax behind the seat. THeir parents bought about 6k worth of tires and an the older kid got in big trouble because the machine was working on federal property. I thin they had to pay for the clean up of the oil that the Knuckle boom and pull out truck lost.



Back in college a friend that was wild was out mudding and got stuck He saw a county mowing tractor and found the key to it. Tied the chain to his truck on the front axle of the tractor and tried to jerk it out. Tore the axle out and left the tractor running. THe tractor had a front mounted pump to run the bbom mower and the axle knocked it off and up into the radiator. He was drinking at the time and in bad judgement left the tractor running till it overheated and smoked the motor. The landowner caught him and called the law. He was asleep i nthe truck. At his trial when the judge said he could work for the county part time and pay 4500 towards the tractor repairs and help with the labor they would clear his record. He got smart with the judge and learnt a lesson.


THe judge sentenced him to go to the state work farm out side of Parchmen State pen and work out the balance of a new Crate motor from the dealer. His job was skinning pond raised catfish at a whopping 5 cents each for the balance of 10K. Every saturday morning he had to report to that site at 6 AM or the fine reset. TO this day12 years later if he smells a raw catfish he gets sick.