Fifty-five underage drivers have been arraigned since 2015, police statistics show.
The issue of underage driving came to the fore last month when a 17-year-old was charged with the attempted murder of traffic policeman Simon Schembri. It emerged in court that the teenager had been caught driving without a licence just four days before the hit-and-run in Luqa. Though badly injured and at one point even fighting for his life, PC Schembri has been making steady progress.
The police figures indicate a drop in the number of teenagers caught driving illegally in 2016, when only 11 cases were reported.
There were 18 arraignments last year and, so far this year, three people aged between 14 and 17 were charged with driving though underage.
PC Schembri’s case was by far the worst involving underage drivers since 2015. In fact, according to the police figures the only other time a person was hurt was three years ago and only slight injuries had been sustained then.
Those arraigned were charged with having no insurance cover and no driving licence.
It would have to be proved they had a basic capacity to understand that what s/he were doing was wrong
They were also charged with dangerous, reckless and negligent driving and causing involuntary damages. The drivers aged 14 to 17 were also charged with excessive speed, using mobile phones while at the wheel and causing hit-and-run incidents.
Legal sources said underage motorists could still be penalised if found guilty despite being minors. Furthermore, they added, their parents could also be fined and ordered by the court to watch over the errant child.
A child aged 13 or under cannot be found guilty of a crime, a legal practitioner pointed out, adding that those older than 14 could be held criminally responsible for their actions.
“The court would need to be convinced that those aged 14 or over were acting with mischievous discretion,” he added.
It would have to be proved that they had a basic capacity to understand that what s/he were doing was wrong, the practitioner continued.
Punishment could be severely reduced if the offender was younger than 16, other legal sources noted, adding that youths over that age would also be considered solely responsible for their actions.