A Grand Junction woman was cited after witnesses reported seeing her 9-year-old daughter driving her across town at least twice last week with the mother and her 10-month-old child as passengers.
Police say Lori Ann Rogers, 36, faces multiple counts of allowing a minor to drive, child abuse, reckless endangerment and operating an uninsured vehicle.
The story was first reported by The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.
Authorities said a witness at a gas station first called police on Friday and said she saw a girl drive a vehicle onto the road.
On Saturday, police received reports of a child driver tailgating, slamming on the brakes, cutting off other motorists and weaving in traffic.
Police spokeswoman Kate Porras said an officer found the car stopped after going through a McDonald's drive-thru.
"It was pretty obvious to witnesses that she was not able to operate this vehicle safely," Porras said. "We're grateful nobody was injured."
Porras said the woman was in the driver's seat when police arrived, but a McDonald's employee who had brought some food to the car told police the woman and child changed seats.
Rogers was issued a summons to appear in court on Nov. 21. She was not taken into custody.
The Mesa County District Attorney's Office said it had no attorney listed for Rogers.
Porras says the investigation did not determine why the child was driving.
It's not the first time Grand Junction police have come across an underage driver.
"Unfortunately, we had another instance over the summer where a 13-year-old was driving a car," Porras said. "In that case, the mother was intoxicated at the time."