Posted on 06/16/2005 10:28:10 AM PDT by Disambiguator
Your children are cute, but if they're not buckled in correctly, they're going to cost you a ticket.
Albuquerque police and law enforcement officers around the state say parents of children ages 5 and up are going to be scrutinized more than ever when a new law on child safety seats goes into effect Friday.
The current law requires safety restraints for children through age 4 or less than 40 pounds. The new law says children ages 5 or 6 or less than 60 pounds must be protected.
Children 7 through 12 also require safety restraints - either a child safety seat if they weigh less than 60 pounds or seat belts.
All seats must meet federal standards.
"A properly secured seat belt fits over thighs, not the abdomen, with knees bent over the seat edge," said Jeannie Chavez, spokeswoman for AAA New Mexico. "A seat belt should go over heaviest part of the bone structure, the shoulder bone, chest bone and over the hip portion of the upper thighs."
The law was proposed by AAA New Mexico and Safer New Mexico Now and passed during the 2005 legislative session.
"Nine out of 10 car seats are installed incorrectly," said Lisa Kelloff, president of Safer New Mexico Now.
Safer New Mexico Now opened five fitting stations statewide last year and is looking to add three this year, she said.
Each station provides proper installation of child safety seats by trained technicians and information on proper use, she said.
"Stations are at permanent locations on a specific day of the month every month at a specific time," Kelloff said. "People should come in with the car and seat, and the child as well."
Fittings at the stations are by appointment only.
The organization also has car seat distribution programs for low-income families in 30 locations around the state.
Albuquerque police spokeswoman Sgt. Beth Paiz said officers will begin enforcing the new law right away.
"There will be no grace period," she said.
Children who move around the back seat, whose heads pop up or who lean over to get something from the front seat are easy to spot, Paiz said. That would constitute probable cause for a traffic stop.
If the child is not in a safety restraint, the driver will be cited, she said.
The fine is $84, Kelloff said, and two points against the driver's license.
However, judges have the discretion to require the offender to take part in a violator education program by Safer New Mexico Now. That would waive the two points, Kelloff said.
>>>" I cringe every time I see a city policeman sitting on the side of am interstate highway"<<<
They are not City Police, they are "Uniformed Tax Collectors" all you have to do is buy them coffee and engage them in conversation, sooner or later you will encounter one that is honest and they will tell you the how and WHY of there shift change meetings and the Plan of the week and the "Score" which is if their collection efforts are on track for their "Goal"
It is all for the $$$$$ and it isn't even denied anymore, it is included in the City, County and State Budget.
LOL!!
The new law in NC is 8 years old or 90 lbs for a booster chair.
90 pounds? My wife barely weighs that much.
But of course ... it is just a matter of entering pre-determined stats into the computer, and voila... evidence!
That means that my 14 yo would have been in a booster seat. Right, like that would happen. Nuts, just nuts!
In 1972 my sister was driving a car with a seat belt/shoulder harness on. She ran head-on into another car, whose occupants were not wearing seat belts.
My sister died of brain injuries, the other people only suffered some cuts, bruises, and one had a broken arm.
Sorry, seat belts can kill, too. And we know air bags cause severe or fatal injuries to those who are small - including most all adult women, not just kids.
Yes, the gubmint sure has made us a lot safer with these inane laws.
No, it's age 8 if they're under 80 lbs., so a person over 8 of any age is excluded.
That is, "a person over 80 lbs. of any age" is excluded. Also a person over 8 years old, of any size.
It would be fun to pass a referendum that states that any municipality that cannot get up to and maintain a 25% solution rate for burglaries within 5 years must fire the entire PD. You can bet that "revenue enhancement" would quickly go to the bottom of the priority list.
Now imagine a 90lbs 7 year old or 8 year old!
Ah, yes, the liberal's favorite maxim: I know I don't need this government intervention, but, hey, I'm worried about my poor, incapable neighbor down the street, THEY need this government mandate!
I've met a few of them.
I'd just like to know on what scientific evidence/studies they come up with these numbers. Why is the magic age 8, not 7 or 9 ? Is that political or based on physiology ?
We all know air bag deployment is calibrated on an average 190 lb 5'10" unbuckled drunk man (to hell with the rest of us), so why do we think these numbers are any more credibly oriented towards safety ?
KoRn says: I wonder when fully grown adults will be forced to ride in child restraint like devices.
June 17, 2005, if you live in New Mexico. Luckily I do not, nor will I ever go there now. I am a full grown adult, well over the weight requirement, however, I remain very short, with no hope of becoming taller. Unless of course the government passes a law ... never mind, will not go there.
This is getting crazy. ----- Welcome to the SOVIET States of America.
Tennessee's law now states that the kids need to be 9 (I think) or 4'9". By that criteria, Tom Daschle would need to be in a child booster seat.
They changed the law in NY last spring so that your kid has to be 10 years old or weigh over 100 pounds to sit without a child restrain... I think it borders on insanity.
Ahh, but they're big enough to require a whole new range of booster chairs...chaching $$$$$.
Hay, I know, the right to vote should be tied to freedom from booster chairs. So when you can finally vote, you are fully enfrenchised to be free of booster chairs. Think of all the money that Chinese industry can make in creating new young adult chairs!
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