Boy, 8, drives sister, 4, to McDonald's for a cheeseburger, doesn't hit anything on the way

© McDonald's McDonald's Cheesburger

Eight p.m. Sunday in East Palestine, Ohio. Dad is in bed after working all day. Mom, also exhausted, falls asleep on the couch. Even though they've had dinner earlier, the 8-year-old son and his 4-year-old sister are hungry — for McDonald's.

But instead of the waking up his parents, the boy decides this is a problem he can handle by himself.
East Palestine Police Officer Jacob Koehler told FOX 8 News what happened next:

The boy seated his sister in the back of the father's work van before he got behind the wheel. He drove about a mile from his house, through four intersections and over railroad tracks. The trip required several right-hand turns and one left-hand turn.

Witnesses in other vehicles spotted the underage driver and called police. They reported he obeyed traffic rules, stopped at red lights, adhered to the speed limit and didn't sideswipe a single garbage can.

After reaching the drive-thru at the fast-food restaurant, the boy paid for the cheeseburgers with money from his piggy bank. The McDonald's workers thought the kid's parents were pranking them.

"The workers thought that the parents were in the back, but obviously they weren't," Koehler told the Weirton Daily Times.

Police arrived, but not before the children got to eat a cheeseburger and chicken nuggets. 

Meanwhile, the kids were spotted by a family friend who notified their grandparents, who drove to the restaurant to take them home.

How did an 8-year-old learn to drive?, Officer Koehler wanted to know. YouTube videos, the boy responded.

Apparently he was tall enough to reach the pedals.
- San Francisco Chronicle