Law enforcement cracks down on seat belts

Drivers who don't wear their seat belts or use proper restraints for their children may end up with a traffic ticket this week.

Law enforcement officers across the state are cracking down on drivers who violate the state's seat belt laws, said Donna Berger, the traffic safety director for the Department of Public Safety.

A ticket and court appearance could cost up to $125. More importantly, Berger said, seat belts help prevent serious injury and death.

"Half of our motorist deaths are still as a result of people not wearing seat belts. We have approximately 150 deaths and 400 serious injuries annually for people who are not buckling up," she said.

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Last year, two children under the age of 8 who were not properly restrained in car seats were killed in crashes.

But even when parents buckle up their kids,they ignore their own seat belts, she said.

Children observe and sometimes adopt the same bad habit when they grow up and learn to drive, Berger said.

"Young males between the age of 18 and 34 tend to be our risk takers. But when it comes to seat belts, teenagers are over represented in fatal and serious injury crashes as a result of not wearing their belts," she said.

All occupants of a vehicle, including people in the back seat, are required to wear seat belts.