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http://www.post-trib.com/news/109810,ptgcrash.article

I added bold to what struck me as interesting

Quote:

Teen hits gas instead of brake in driving test, rams license branch

October 25, 2006
By CHRISTIN NANCE Post Tribune
PORTAGE -- Parallel parking. Check.

Changing lanes. Check.

» Click to enlarge image

BRIAN PIERRO/Post-Tribune

Turning left into oncoming traffic. Check.

Pulling into a parking space. Well, the Portage License Bureau office doesn't normally count as a parking space.

Shortly after completing the road test for her driver's license Tuesday, 20-year-old Jessica Krasek ended the exam by crashing into the license bureau.

Her maroon 2003 Ford Taurus struck the front window of the license branch office at 3339 Willowcreek Road in the Willowcreek Plaza, a small strip mall north of U.S. 6. The accident happened at about 1:30 p.m.

The girl wasn't hurt but a BMV worker suffered a hip injury and was examined by emergency medical personnel but was not hospitalized.

Portage Assistant Fire Chief Mike Bucy said the teen was pulling into a parking space and she hit the accelerator, instead of the brake pedal.

The car is registered to South Haven resident Tina Coulter, who said her unidentified niece was the driver. She declined comment.

Amazing Travel manager Susan Williams described the accident, saying she thought something had exploded next door.

Williams said she felt a boom and then heard glass shatter.

"We jumped up and we went to the door and saw the car half in and half out of the license bureau," Williams said.

Jennifer Stover, a clerk at Bryan's Florist, said the accident was shocking.

"(It was) like a big boom; the building shook a little bit," Stover said. "My reaction was 'Oh my God!' "

Williams said everyone was so stunned by the crash that they neglected to call 911.

"Everybody was on their cell phones, but nobody called 911. I came back in and called 911," Williams said.

A large plate-glass window was shattered and its metal frame was bent. The license branch was closed for the remainder of the day but is expected to open today. License branch employees said they couldn't talk to a reporter about the accident.

Portage police also responded to the call but said a report wouldn't be completed until today.

Of course I got a chuckle from the story. What Iwonder is why say that it was a teen that did this. Maybe the word teen was used in the headline simply for spacing issues. Saying "twenty year old" takes more space than "teen"

The cynic in me leans toward believing it was because including the word teen in a headline about auto accidents sells more papers to the older generation, who seem to love reading how bad those "dern teenagers" are.

So am I reading to much into this? Is this just a spacing issue? Or is this a symptom of something bigger?