‘I’m not proud of him:’ Mother of 7-year-old that drove car from Clearfield to Ogden speaks out

OGDEN, Utah (ABC4) — Whitney Bush said that she woke up to the Clearfield Police Department knocking on her door Sunday morning, telling her that her 7-year-old son had taken his 5-year-old sister on

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a drive to Ogden.

In an interview with ABC4, Bush said that she woke up early to check on her four children and went back to bed when she found everyone asleep in bed. Later, a knock on the door alerted her to the fact that her car and two of her children were now missing.

“I absolutely had my heart in my stomach… I had no idea what was going on, I was being told different stories of what was happening,” Bush said about how she felt in the moment.

According to the Ogden Police Department, a reckless driver had been called in around 8 a.m. on April 27. Officers began pursuit, but soon disengaged due to the age of the driver and risk to the public.

The vehicle later struck a parking strip, and police responded to the scene of the crash. The children were found unharmed, according to officers.

“I went to the scene of the crash… and then I got rerouted to the police department,” Bush said. “They had already had — I guess — EMS come out and check on my kids and transferred them over to the police station.”

She stated that she wanted to emphasize that her 7-year-old has had some behavioral issues, although nothing to this extent before. Bush said that she had reached out for resources from DCFS, the police, and even hospitals. She said that nobody had offered help due to his age.

“I don’t think anybody wakes up in the morning or goes through their day thinking their 7-year-old is going to play ‘Grand Theft Auto’ with their vehicle,” she stated.

Bush shared her story on Facebook and said that there had been some positive support.

“He’s got a family full of truck drivers. He’s gonna be a truck driver someday, that’s what he wants to do,” Bush laughed. “I told him it’s not gonna be today, he’s gotta wait.”

According to Bush, the 7-year-old told everyone he was planning to go to McDonald’s. She said that he did pass several on his route and had the money prepared. He was also proud to say that he wore his seatbelt during the drive.

As a single mother, Bush said that this has been difficult. Her car is out of commission and in a tow yard; she’s not sure if it’s totaled, but says that it doesn’t look like it from photos.

Although she wasn’t there, Bush was able to get some information from the driver who was hit by her son while driving. She said that she was told the 7-year-old made it to Ogden before hitting anybody. According to him, the two children got out and “flipped [him] off.”

She stated that she wasn’t sure where that attitude had come from; her kids don’t play video games and don’t have access to YouTube or anything along those lines. She was surprised that they were acting out like that.

“I’m not proud of him by any means,” Bush said, although she admitted it was impressive. “He’s in a world of trouble, he’s probably grounded for the rest of his life.”

She said that the 7-year-old is not facing charges because of his age, but she’s having him perform community service for neighbors to serve his time.