Tangie Wilson was sleeping when her daughter Zoe sneaked out of the house and drove to the store. The tale of how it all unfolded is as relatable as it is incredible.
When Tangie Wilson’s 8-year-old daughter, Zoe, asked to use her iPad early one Sunday morning in September at their home in Bedford, Ohio, she assumed her child had settled into her room or on the couch with the device, so she went back to sleep.
She didn’t know that Zoe, who was still upset after an argument with her older sister the night before, managed to sneak out of the house with her mother’s car keys, wallet and ID around 7 a.m. The third grader then drove the family’s S.U.V. — with the family’s dog, Bear, in tow — about 10 miles to Target in an act of rebellion...
What followed was a brief missing-persons case that involved neighbors, family members and the local police. Zoe, who was found safe at Target nearly two hours later, became an internet and media sensation, leading many to question how a child so young could get herself to the store without hurting anyone, and how she ended up with a Frappuccino at the store’s Starbucks...
Ms. Wilson said that her daughter had made a plan the night before to take the car, but that Zoe had told her she did not have a destination in mind for her adventure until she accidentally cracked the iPad while leaving the house, so she figured she would go to Target to replace the case. When she couldn’t determine what size case she needed, she shopped for toys and makeup instead...
...Neighbors poured into the streets to help with the search, and one shared footage from a Ring security camera, which showed the child pulling out of the driveway in the car...
Ms. Wilson said Zoe had no previous experience driving, beyond playing with go-karts and sitting on her father’s and her grandfather’s laps in the car when she was an infant. Ms. Wilson discussed the entire ordeal with The New York Times, including the Facebook post by the Bedford Police Department in which the department claimed to have found the child perfectly safe and having a drink at the store’s Starbucks (which, Ms. Wilson said, was most likely purchased for Zoe by the officers who found her...
And from an earlier article:She didn’t know that Zoe, who was still upset after an argument with her older sister the night before, managed to sneak out of the house with her mother’s car keys, wallet and ID around 7 a.m. The third grader then drove the family’s S.U.V. — with the family’s dog, Bear, in tow — about 10 miles to Target in an act of rebellion...
What followed was a brief missing-persons case that involved neighbors, family members and the local police. Zoe, who was found safe at Target nearly two hours later, became an internet and media sensation, leading many to question how a child so young could get herself to the store without hurting anyone, and how she ended up with a Frappuccino at the store’s Starbucks...
Ms. Wilson said that her daughter had made a plan the night before to take the car, but that Zoe had told her she did not have a destination in mind for her adventure until she accidentally cracked the iPad while leaving the house, so she figured she would go to Target to replace the case. When she couldn’t determine what size case she needed, she shopped for toys and makeup instead...
...Neighbors poured into the streets to help with the search, and one shared footage from a Ring security camera, which showed the child pulling out of the driveway in the car...
Ms. Wilson said Zoe had no previous experience driving, beyond playing with go-karts and sitting on her father’s and her grandfather’s laps in the car when she was an infant. Ms. Wilson discussed the entire ordeal with The New York Times, including the Facebook post by the Bedford Police Department in which the department claimed to have found the child perfectly safe and having a drink at the store’s Starbucks (which, Ms. Wilson said, was most likely purchased for Zoe by the officers who found her...
She acknowledged to police officers that she struck a mailbox during her drive to Target... “I only hit a mailbox and it was green.”
No one is facing any charges, according to Rick Suts, the deputy chief of the Bedford Police. Hours after the incident, the police department found humor in the entire ordeal, writing in a Facebook post that they had finally found someone “who’s in more of a hurry to shop at Target than my wife.”
“That’s right an 8 year old took mommy’s car this morning and drove to Target in Bainbridge to shop,” the post said. “Thankfully she made it and was immediately located by Bainbridge Police. She’s now home safe.”
“We did let her finish her Frappuccino,” the post added. “We’re not mean.”
“That’s right an 8 year old took mommy’s car this morning and drove to Target in Bainbridge to shop,” the post said. “Thankfully she made it and was immediately located by Bainbridge Police. She’s now home safe.”
“We did let her finish her Frappuccino,” the post added. “We’re not mean.”
