Mississippi man let 8-year-old drive truck while he slept, say cops

(CBS/AP) BATON ROUGE - Who needs a designated driver when you have kids? That's what one resourceful Mississippi dad seems to have thought.

Louisiana state police say they arrested a drunk 28-year-old man who let his 8-year-old son drive the family pick-up truck while daddy took a quick nap in the passenger seat.

The child, who likely has never taken a driving class, drove erratically down an interstate until alarmed motorists called authorities.

Troopers say the man's 4-year-old daughter was in the back seat when the truck was pulled over Saturday morning in Livingston Parish. The children have been handed over to Louisiana Child Protective Services.

The father, 28-year-old Billy Joe Madden of Hattiesburg, Miss., was arrested on charges including Child Desertion and Allowing a Minor to Drive.