'I did battle with God' 

 CHARLESTON, W.Va. - If someone threw a party, Paula Carson was there.

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Aaron Hill often spent Saturday nights with his dad, competing in remote-control car races at an old school gym in Huntington. He even won a few trophies for it. In 1996, he was a high school junior and wanted to become a police officer.

Jason Hedrick loved giving people nicknames. His friends called him "Fearless Frederick." In 1996, he had just graduated from Buffalo High School, where he was a track star.

Johnathon Higginbotham loved to drink Mountain Dew and wear Axe cologne. In 2004, he had just registered to vote. He couldn't wait to play starting guard for Buffalo High's basketball team.

All died before their 20th birthdays, all at the wheel.

Americans ages 15 to 20 die from car crashes more than any other cause. A combination of inexperience and immaturity contributes to that, experts say.

But West Virginians are more likely to die on the road. Between 1996 and 2006, West Virginia's fatality rate for both young drivers and all drivers has been above the national average. In 2006, that rate for young people was 70 percent higher than the national average, according to federal statistics.

As a rural area, it makes sense there is a high percentage of deadly crashes in West Virginia, experts say. But while most West Virginians buckle up, many teens do not. And the state lags behind in rules for young drivers that could save lives.

'He thought he was a great driver'

On a Sunday night in March 1996, Hill was driving with another teenage boy. One of their friends was in another car. They were all driving on W.Va. 34 in Teays Valley.

Aaron went around a curve, lost all control and hit a tractor-trailer. Aaron was going way too fast - maybe up to 75 mph.

Both boys died in an instant.

Aaron loved driving, said his mother, Sandy Hill of Bancroft. He often drove himself to school and to the movies.

"He was a good driver," she said. "But he thought he was a great driver."

That's a common attitude, said Charleston driving instructor Tim McCoy.

McCoy has been teaching at the Capitol Driving School for 15 years. He sees young people plead to take their driving tests - even if they're clearly not ready. Most of his students are teens, but he also teaches adults.

"The adults see for themselves they're not ready," he said. "Adults won't beg to take the driving test."

Many teens "don't know what they don't know," said Kenneth Beck, a professor at the University of Maryland's School of Public Health, who studies teen driving behaviors.

"They have a heightened sense of their own driving competence, which often exceeds their actual driving competence," he said.

Kids often act differently with their friends than with their parents, said Larry Kendall, a regional director for the Governor's Highway Safety Program: "It's when Mom and Dad aren't in the car that the behavior tends to change a little bit."

Boys are especially prone to aggressive and risky driving.

Of 36 West Virginia drivers age 16 to 20 who died in crashes in 2006, only seven were female.

Though she will never know for sure, Hill believes her son and the other boys were messing around on the road, trying to keep up with each other.

"You can't discount the effects of testosterone," Beck said. "In our society, males more likely would be the driver, and they view driving as an act of self-expression, as an act of valor in some situations."

Laws don't stack up

Across the country, lawmakers began to take action on young drivers in the 1990s. They devised Graduated Driver's License (GDL) laws, which put restrictions on young drivers.

West Virginia legislators took that step in 1999, when they passed the state's graduated license law.

Under the licensing rules, drivers in the "intermediate" stage - ages 16 and 17- cannot drive between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. They can't have more than three unrelated teen passengers in the vehicle.

It's not enough, according to experts. West Virginia's GDL laws are ranked "fair" by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The state's rules fall short on several levels, said Anne Fleming, a spokeswoman for the institute.

First, West Virginians can get a learner's permit at 15.

"The better thing is to not start until you're 16," Fleming said. "While teenagers in general do have high crash rates, they are much higher with 15-year-olds.... One year makes a big difference because that's where the crash rate is much higher."

The law is too permissive on nighttime driving and passenger restrictions, Fleming said. The institute recommends that young drivers don't drive after 9 or 10 p.m., and that they can have no more than one teen passenger. Both factors increase crash risks for teens.

"We would certainly concede that we do have room for improvement," said Steve Dale, assistant to the commissioner of the state's Department of Motor Vehicles.

There are no plans to do that, he said.

He points out that the state's teen crashes and deaths have decreased since 2001.

Dale also said the state doesn't get enough credit in some areas. Last year, state legislators passed a law to ban drivers under 18 from using cell phones as they drive - ahead of most other states. Pennsylvania lawmakers are now mulling over a similar law.

'Something bad's going to happen'

On a Thursday morning four years ago, Johnathon Higginbotham was making his way down a notoriously dangerous rural road: U.S. 35 in Putnam County. He was on his way to see his dad, who lived in Pliny.

Johnathon - known as "Thun" at school - drifted into the left-hand lane.

"And on Route 35, you don't have that kind of time," said his mother, Vallery Withrow. 

 'I did battle with God' 

 CHARLESTON, W.Va. - If someone threw a party, Paula Carson was there.

In 1989, the Winifrede native was 19 and had just moved to North Carolina and started a job as a receptionist at a stockbroker's office.

Aaron Hill often spent Saturday nights with his dad, competing in remote-control car races at an old school gym in Huntington. He even won a few trophies for it. In 1996, he was a high school junior and wanted to become a police officer.

Jason Hedrick loved giving people nicknames. His friends called him "Fearless Frederick." In 1996, he had just graduated from Buffalo High School, where he was a track star.

Johnathon Higginbotham loved to drink Mountain Dew and wear Axe cologne. In 2004, he had just registered to vote. He couldn't wait to play starting guard for Buffalo High's basketball team.

All died before their 20th birthdays, all at the wheel.

Americans ages 15 to 20 die from car crashes more than any other cause. A combination of inexperience and immaturity contributes to that, experts say.

But West Virginians are more likely to die on the road. Between 1996 and 2006, West Virginia's fatality rate for both young drivers and all drivers has been above the national average. In 2006, that rate for young people was 70 percent higher than the national average, according to federal statistics.

As a rural area, it makes sense there is a high percentage of deadly crashes in West Virginia, experts say. But while most West Virginians buckle up, many teens do not. And the state lags behind in rules for young drivers that could save lives.

'He thought he was a great driver'

On a Sunday night in March 1996, Hill was driving with another teenage boy. One of their friends was in another car. They were all driving on W.Va. 34 in Teays Valley.

Aaron went around a curve, lost all control and hit a tractor-trailer. Aaron was going way too fast - maybe up to 75 mph.

Both boys died in an instant.

Aaron loved driving, said his mother, Sandy Hill of Bancroft. He often drove himself to school and to the movies.

"He was a good driver," she said. "But he thought he was a great driver."

That's a common attitude, said Charleston driving instructor Tim McCoy.

McCoy has been teaching at the Capitol Driving School for 15 years. He sees young people plead to take their driving tests - even if they're clearly not ready. Most of his students are teens, but he also teaches adults.

"The adults see for themselves they're not ready," he said. "Adults won't beg to take the driving test."

Many teens "don't know what they don't know," said Kenneth Beck, a professor at the University of Maryland's School of Public Health, who studies teen driving behaviors.

"They have a heightened sense of their own driving competence, which often exceeds their actual driving competence," he said.

Kids often act differently with their friends than with their parents, said Larry Kendall, a regional director for the Governor's Highway Safety Program: "It's when Mom and Dad aren't in the car that the behavior tends to change a little bit."

Boys are especially prone to aggressive and risky driving.

Of 36 West Virginia drivers age 16 to 20 who died in crashes in 2006, only seven were female.

Though she will never know for sure, Hill believes her son and the other boys were messing around on the road, trying to keep up with each other.

"You can't discount the effects of testosterone," Beck said. "In our society, males more likely would be the driver, and they view driving as an act of self-expression, as an act of valor in some situations."

Laws don't stack up

Across the country, lawmakers began to take action on young drivers in the 1990s. They devised Graduated Driver's License (GDL) laws, which put restrictions on young drivers.

West Virginia legislators took that step in 1999, when they passed the state's graduated license law.

Under the licensing rules, drivers in the "intermediate" stage - ages 16 and 17- cannot drive between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m. They can't have more than three unrelated teen passengers in the vehicle.

It's not enough, according to experts. West Virginia's GDL laws are ranked "fair" by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The state's rules fall short on several levels, said Anne Fleming, a spokeswoman for the institute.

First, West Virginians can get a learner's permit at 15.

"The better thing is to not start until you're 16," Fleming said. "While teenagers in general do have high crash rates, they are much higher with 15-year-olds.... One year makes a big difference because that's where the crash rate is much higher."

The law is too permissive on nighttime driving and passenger restrictions, Fleming said. The institute recommends that young drivers don't drive after 9 or 10 p.m., and that they can have no more than one teen passenger. Both factors increase crash risks for teens.

"We would certainly concede that we do have room for improvement," said Steve Dale, assistant to the commissioner of the state's Department of Motor Vehicles.

There are no plans to do that, he said.

He points out that the state's teen crashes and deaths have decreased since 2001.

Dale also said the state doesn't get enough credit in some areas. Last year, state legislators passed a law to ban drivers under 18 from using cell phones as they drive - ahead of most other states. Pennsylvania lawmakers are now mulling over a similar law.

'Something bad's going to happen'

On a Thursday morning four years ago, Johnathon Higginbotham was making his way down a notoriously dangerous rural road: U.S. 35 in Putnam County. He was on his way to see his dad, who lived in Pliny.

Johnathon - known as "Thun" at school - drifted into the left-hand lane.

"And on Route 35, you don't have that kind of time," said his mother, Vallery Withrow. 

He hit a tractor-trailer head on. Because of his medical history, his family is almost certain Johnathon had a seizure while driving.

Rural drivers are especially at risk for deadly crashes, said Lee Munnich, director of the University of Minnesota Center for Excellence in Rural Safety. While minor fender benders are common in cities, fatality rates are twice as high in rural areas.

Rural roads often are not built to interstate standards, and drivers are more likely run off roads in rural areas, Munnich said. People also act differently on country roads. They're more likely to speed, to drink and drive, and to not wear seatbelts. And they're usually farther from a hospital.

The Mountain State's topography doesn't help, said Bob Tipton, the state's Commissioner of Highway Safety.

"West Virginia roadways are pretty unforgiving if you make a mistake," Tipton said. "In West Virginia, if you make a mistake and drive off the road ... something bad's going to happen."

'These boys grew up driving'

Jason Hedrick could steer a towboat when he was a little boy; he learned from his dad, a towboat captain. He drove tractors and dirt bikes and ATVs. He had driven the back roads to band camp before he had a license. His license plate read "FEARLESS."

"These boys out here grew up driving," said his mother, Anna, who lives in Midway. "They're country boys."

In 1996, Jason was 18 and driving on Cross Creek Road to get gas with his 16-year-old girlfriend. Earlier that evening, he had been at a friend's house, fixing the stereo in his truck. A month before, he had graduated from high school.  

A mile from home, Jason drove off the road. His Ford Ranger flipped four times.

Neither was wearing a seatbelt. The girl was not injured badly. She walked to get help. Hedrick was thrown from his truck. The girlfriend was released that night from Putnam General. Jason died at CAMC in Charleston.

Even today, no one knows why Jason drove off the road, his mother said. Police ruled out speeding, drugs and alcohol.

Most West Virginians do buckle up. Almost 90 percent wear their seatbelts, according to figures provided by Dale. That's up from about 72 percent in 2002, when the state started "Click It or Ticket."

But in some ways, the state also is behind the national trends. West Virginia has a "secondary" seatbelt law, meaning a police officer can only cite someone for violating the law if they're pulled over for something else.

In 1999, 14 states had primary seatbelt laws, Fleming said. Today, more than half the nation does.

"There's an avalanche of research indicating that compliance with seatbelt laws is enhanced with primary enforcement than with secondary enforcement," Fleming said.

For the past four years, Delegate Corey Palumbo, D-Kanawha, has introduced bills to enact a primary seatbelt law. Others have tried before him. But the issue hasn't gained traction among the public or lawmakers.

"I think it's sort of just the 'Mountaineers are always free' mentality," Palumbo said. "A lot of people don't want to be told what to do in their car, and a lot of legislators are sympathetic to that." 

Munnich of the rural safety center said many of the states without primary laws are rural.

"I think more rural cultures tend to be more independent and not want to have those kinds of laws," he said. "There are a lot of people that feel that government shouldn't determine whether they wear seatbelts."

In West Virginia, half the young drivers who died in 2006 weren't wearing seatbelts.

Lt. C.N. Zerkle of the State Police said he recently has seen many cases of teens being thrown from their vehicles because they weren't wearing seatbelts. That surprises him because kids today have grown up with car seats and seatbelt laws.

"I don't know if it's a rebellion, a not cool thing," he said. "We're trying to figure it out, too."

What can work

Experts say there's hope for making kids safer on the road.

"The more teens drive, the better they get. But the more they drive under high-risk conditions, the more likely they are to crash," Beck of the public health school said. "The real trick is, how do we give them the exposure, the experience under lower-risk driving conditions?"

Strong graduated license laws and public awareness campaigns can help reduce deaths, Beck said.

Parents can also do a lot to help, he said. In 2005, Beck led a study that found that teens drive more safely when they and their parents discuss and agree on rules for the road, and the consequences at home for breaking them.

Beck recommends that parents and teens sign a "contract" for specific rules, such as how late the teen can drive and how many passengers they can have. Both parent and teen sign off on it, leaving less room for misunderstanding. 

The state runs some programs that encourage kids to be safe, Kendall said. For instance, the "Battle of the Belts" program surveys schools about their seatbelt habits. Schools compete to see which can get more kids wearing their belts over time.

The program does increase teen seatbelt use, but its effects aren't always permanent, Kendall said. The seatbelt rate often drops after the program is done, though it is always higher than when the students started.

Safety comes down to understanding the seriousness of driving, instructor McCoy said. Sometimes, kids - and even their parents - just don't get it.

He hears kids say things like, "My mom's paying for his. I just want to get this over with."

So every time he starts a class, he asks his students to raise their hands if they know anyone who has been in a serious wreck. All the hands go up. Then he asks if they know anyone who has been killed in a car wreck.

They start to talk. They talk about valedictorians and football stars.

"If that's not going to do it, there's nothing that's going to do it," McCoy said. " And it breaks your heart."

Tragically, laws and safety tips can't save innocent drivers - because others break them.

On a night in 1989, 19-year-old Paula Carson was on a visit to her hometown from North Carolina. She had spent the day with her brother and sister and visiting friends.

In the middle of the night, Carson took her mom's keys and went looking for her boyfriend. In Marmet, a drunk driver hit her head on.

He had been drinking all night. He had run another driver off the road and almost hit a pedestrian, said Carson's sister, Hope Smith. Three men had to put him in his car.

Carson wasn't so lucky. She died that night, 15 minutes before the man who hit her.

Reach Alison Knezevich at alis...@wvgazette.com">alis...@wvgazette.com or 348-1240.