Driver and injured teen could face charges following accident in West Jordan

WEST JORDAN — Two teenagers could face criminal charges of reckless driving in connection with an accident that left one of them in critical condition.

“The determining factor here, in determining how long charges could be coming, would be if the injured party stays in the hospital, and whether his condition improves or deteriorates,” officer Craig Carroll said.

Police say the 16-year-old climbed from the cab of the truck into the vehicle's bed. The driver was watching the stunt and overcorrected when he turned his focus back to the road, causing the passenger to fall from the moving vehicle Wednesday in a neighborhood near 9000 South and 4700 West.

Carroll says the 18-year-old driver should have stopped the truck once he realized what was happening.

“Sometimes, especially younger people think they are invincible," Carroll said. "They don’t realize or think far enough ahead as to what some of the consequences of their actions might be.”

Carroll says the accident was totally preventable if the pair would have just pulled over.

Carroll would not release the name of the driver, where they were heading or what they were trying to retrieve from the cab. He adds that police are simply focusing on the crash itself.

E-mail: psamore@ksl.com