Posted on 01/13/2005 11:15:09 AM PST by CORedneck
There will be a meeting tonight to get a coalition of gov't officials and residents to support a Primary Enforcement Seatbelt law in Colorado.
The meeting is at 7:00 pm tonight at the Greeley Police Station at 919 Seventh Street.
The legislation to enhance the Colorado's seatbelt law is being sponsored by two demoRATS - Jim Reisberg (D-Greeley) and Fran Coleman (D-Denver).
Here are some arguments against this legislation.
1. Seat belt laws represent unabated tyranny on the march as each year law enforcement is expanded. Such laws infringe on a person's rights as guaranteed in the Fourth, Fifth, and the Ninth Amendments, and the Civil Rights section of the Fourteenth Amendment.
2. Seat belt laws are an unwarranted intrusion by government into the personal lives of citizens; they deny through prior restraint the right to determine a person's own health standards for his own body, the ultimate private property. Not using a seat belt is a victimless, state-created crime that does not hurt or threaten anyone.
3. Your vehicle can be stopped anytime, day or night, by the police merely under suspicion a seat belt is not being used. And even if mistaken, once the vehicle is stopped the officer can begin routine interrogation and testing - force occupants to exit - visually check out the contents of the inside of the vehicle looking for any kind of a violation of the law, all without the right of legal counsel; all under the pretense of not using a seat belt.
4. Primary enforcement encourages the use of random roadblocks. In a 1994 statewide campaign, North Carolina conducted 2,038 roadblocks in just two weeks under the pretext of checking for seat belt use. In spite of further use of random roadblocks that year, which the governor boasted increased seat belt use to 80%, total highway facilities actually increased in the state for 1994 over the record of each of the preceding 3 years.
5. If not using a seat belt, you could be stopped for a minor traffic violation that otherwise would be ignored if using a seat belt. You may also be targeted because of a bumper sticker, your license plate, your age, race, or gender. Primary enforcement opens the door for police harassment, stalking, intimidation and profiling. Young people, women, and minorities are vulnerable, especially when traveling alone and at night, or in certain neighborhoods.
6. You are subject to an officer's misinterpretation of your answers, your attitude, or what the officer sees in your vehicle. You could become the victim of a corrupt act, such as planting drugs in your vehicle by an officer. You could be accused of using drugs because the cash in your possession has the odor of drugs. Officers can confiscate your cash and vehicle if there is some drug residue without proving you knew about or caused the residue to be there. Courts have recognized most currency in circulation has some discernible drug residue. It is reported that 80% of the assets confiscated by law enforcement do not lead to a criminal charge, but only a small percent is ever returned. Confiscation of assets has become a lucrative business for some police agencies and offers big incentives to increase roadblocks and speed traps.
7. Primary enforcement is promoted as saving lives, however, stopping vehicles for non-seat belt use is only an excuse to arbitrarily and capriciously accuse people of traffic violations of one kind or another, thus issuing citations as a means of easily increasing revenue, as well as providing easy lucrative overtime income for the police. Primary enforcement has nothing to do with saving lives; has all to do with revenue enhancement at the expense of fleecing the motoring public.
Also for motorcyclist, if this gets passed, how long before a helmet law is enacted ?
Yep. It is used for "probably cause".
I have a convertible. My seatbelt starts at the top shoulder of my seat (it does not affix to the wall of the car). I've raised the suspicion of at least one police officer as a result even though I was wearing my seatbelt.
Don't forget, depending on your state law, you can even be arrested and hauled off to jail for not wearing your seat belt.
Wished we'd put up opposition against the same law in our state. Hate the signs on the road that say "Click it or ticket it."
Worst law ever. A seat belt ticket in NYC will cost you $95 when all is said and done. If I feel inclined to not wear my seat belt and go through the windshield of my car if im in an accident why the hell should I not be able to?? Stay out my life!!!
Not me. It is a reminder that we live at the pleasure of the state. They can harass, incarcerate, or kill you on the flimsiest of excuses. The the sign as a reminder of the police state.
While you're there, why not fight against the unwarranted intrusion of the state by requiring you to have a drivers license and registration for your vehicle?
Wished we'd put up opposition against the same law in our state. Hate the signs on the road that say "Click it or ticket it."I've long been tempted to have a stencil made adding the words "stick it!" to these.
-Eric
While you're there, why not fight against the unwarranted intrusion of the state by requiring you to have a drivers license and registration for your vehicle?Those ensure the safety of others. Seat belt laws do not.
-Eric
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