12-year-old driver hits apartment building

A 12-year-old boy's short joy ride ended badly Thursday morning when the van he was attempting to drive rammed an apartment building, sending a woman to the hospital.

The incident occurred around 7:45 a.m. at the Enclave on Cushman apartments on Cushman Circle in southwest Atlanta. Atlanta Police Sgt. Michelle McKenzie said the boy decided to take a van for a spin in the parking lot.

The boy "was sent out to his mom's car to get a book. He wanted to ride around in the parking lot, put the vehicle in reverse and backed into the apartment structure. It so happened his neighbor was seated on the other side of the window."

After the van hit the building, the boy cut short his adventure. McKenzie said he never even got out of the parking space.

"And then he decided to go off to school," she said, but the neighbor reported the incident to his mother.

Although there was minimal damage to the apartment building and the van, the woman who reported the incident said she was injured as she was jolted from her chair.

McKenzie said the woman complained of back and knee pain. She was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital in stable condition.