Law enforcement in Kandiyohi, Swift counties and Willmar plan extra seat belt enforcement Oct. 9-25

WILLMAR - The Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office, the Swift County Sheriff’s Office and Willmar Police Department announce they will participate in the Click It or Ticket campaign Oct. 9 - 25 to continue educating motorists that seat belts save lives.
Not wearing a seat belt was a deadly choice for the half of the people killed in crashes in Minnesota from January through June 2015, according to a news release from the law enforcement agencies. Of those people who died in crashes during the period, 50 percent were not wearing a seat belt, according to preliminary data.
Men lead the way when choosing not to buckle up. Fifty-four percent of men killed during the period were unbelted, compared with 40 percent of women.
Preliminary numbers show 48 percent of men seriously injured from June through July were unbelted, while 26 percent of women failed to buckle up.
In 2014 crashes, 89 of 183 men killed were not buckled, and 33 of 95 women killed were not belted.
“The first line of defense in a crash is your seatbelt,” said Benson Police Sgt. Paul Larson. “Those not buckled up during a crash can be tossed around like a ping pong ball, thrown from the vehicle into oncoming traffic or even risk their own car rolling over them. These violent deaths are preventable with one simple click.”
More Minnesotans than ever are getting the message that belts save lives. Minnesota’s 2015 seat belt survey shows 94 percent compliance, compared with 87 percent nationally, according to the 2013 National Occupant Protection Use Survey.
In 2014, 44 percent of motorists who died statewide were not buckled up, compared with 58 percent in 2005. When comparing to the lives lost those years, 440 motor vehicle occupants died in 2005 in Minnesota traffic crashes compared with 278 in 2014, a 37 percent decrease. People includes non-motorists, such as bicyclists and pedestrians.
Minnesota law states that drivers and passengers in all seating positions must be buckled up or seated in the correct child restraint. Officers will stop and ticket unbelted drivers or passengers. Seat belts must be worn correctly - low and snug across the hips, and shoulder straps should never be tucked under an arm or behind the back.
In Minnesota, all children must be in a child restraint until they are 4 feet 9 inches tall, or at least age 8, whichever comes first. Use rear-facing child seats for newborns to at least 1 year and 20 pounds; and they are recommended up to age 2.
Forward-facing seats are appropriate for age 2 until around age 4. It’s preferable to keep children in a harnessed restraint until they reach the maximum weight limit.
Booster seats can be used after outgrowing a forward-facing harnessed restraint. It is safest to remain in a booster until 4 feet 9 inches tall, or at least age 8, whichever comes first.
Seat belts can be used when children can sit with their back against the vehicle seat and have their knees bent comfortably over the edge with their feet touching the floor.