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Click it or Ticket Mobilization Nabs 10,000 Violators

July 25, 2005 (05-148)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Click it or Ticket Mobilization Nabs 10,000 Violators

4,000 cited for failing to wear seat belts

More than 4,000 motorists were ticketed for not wearing seat belts and another 855 drivers were cited for failing to properly restrain children during a recent Click it or Ticket mobilization in Kansas.

The aggressive enforcement effort was held May 23 through June 5. More than 80 police departments and sheriff's offices in Kansas, as well as the Kansas Highway Patrol, participated in the effort. Nationally, more than 12,000 law enforcement agencies were involved in the mobilization.

"The law enforcement community really stepped up and we applaud their extra efforts," said Pete Bodyk, chief of the Bureau of Traffic Safety of the Kansas Department of Transportation, which funded the state effort.

During the mobilization, almost 27,500 motorists were stopped. Those traffic stops resulted in more than 10,000 citations for the following violations:

• Seat belt violations - 4,310
• Child restraint violations - 855
• Speeding - 5,674
• DUI - 111

This year's mobilization yielded about 1,500 more citations than last year's effort. Police wrote 109 more speeding tickets, 17 more DUIs, 1,219 more seat belt violations and 245 more child restraint violations.

In addition to the enforcement effort, the Click it or Ticket campaign featured extensive newspaper, television and radio advertising.

"Aggressive enforcement periods like Click It Or Ticket are most valuable when they're augmented with heightened awareness efforts," Bodyk said.

Last year, 461 people died in vehicle crashes in Kansas; 76 percent of them were not wearing seat belts. An additional 2,000 suffered disabling injuries and some 23,000 suffered other injuries. In the 15-18 age group, 85 percent of the 51 young people who were killed in traffic crashes in Kansas last year were unbelted. Among the states, Kansas ranks 43rd in terms of compliance with seat belt laws.

Kansas law requires all vehicle drivers and front seat passengers to be buckled up. All children under 14 must be properly restrained. Children under four must be properly secured in an approved child safety seat.

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