What could add more insult to the horrendous tragedy of two teenagers dying in an accident? How about an admission in court that the driver, a newly licensed driver (3 weeks before the accident), had smoked marijuana an hour before he got behind the wheel with five friends in the car! This is the same accident I blogged on last november: Good News and Bad News for Safe Driving .

Austin Ewers, the 16 year old driver, admitted in juvenile court that had had done just that. He will remain in custody as a result and his case will be transferred to Montgomery County for final disposition.

I applaud the trial judge, Chester County Senior Judge, Charles B. Smith, for using the hearing as an opportunity to call from the bench for changes in current Pennsylvania law which allows new drivers like Ewers to drive a car with so many youthful passengers:

Citing the loss of six teenagers in crashes during a recent 90-day stretch, the judge said he hoped Pennsylvania lawmakers would pass legislation to restrict the number of passengers a teen can transport, as most states have done.

He said research indicates that the part of the brain responsible for judgment is not fully developed in teenagers, and said an ad taken out by the Allstate Insurance Co. stated that 4,000 teens died in 2008 in accidents that involved multiple teen passengers.

“Please, somebody do something,” Smith said, urging the audience to lobby for stricter teen-driving laws.

I couldn’t agree more strongly with Judge Smith. As a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania car and truck accident lawyer, I have been lobbying, writing and blogging on this issue for years. Here is a link to my safe driving blogs: Auto Accidents .