Jun 8, 2009 5:50 pm US/Central
Minn. Cops To Start Pulling Over Unbelted Drivers
ST. PAUL (WCCO) ―
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Starting Tuesday, not wearing a seatbelt is a primary offense -- a $25 ticket and court surcharges that could top $100.
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Minnesotans who don't wear a seat belt when they drive have until Tuesday to start, or they could end up facing the consequences. That's when the state's new primary seat belt law kicks in.
It's already against the law not to wear a seat belt in Minnesota, but as a secondary offense, police could not pull over drivers who didn't buckle up until now. They had to be pulled over for a primary violation first.
Starting Tuesday, not wearing a seatbelt is a primary offense -- a $25 ticket and court surcharges that could top $100.
"I think it sucks," said Derek Enger from Elk River. "I just don't agree with it. I have been pulled over before. They use it as an excuse I think to pull people, pull them over."
The vast majority of Minnesotan drivers already buckle up, but anyone who looks can see that some people do not.
The law is aimed at teenagers, who make up 6 percent of total drivers but 12 percent of fatalities and are less likely to wear a belt. Now, for every unbuckled passenger under 15, the driver gets another ticket, says the law's author.
"Whoever is driving is in command. They are in command and control, and that means that they are responsible," said Sen. Steve Murphy (DFL-Red Wing).
Twenty-seven states now have primary seat belt laws and public opinion surveys say drivers tend to support it.
"There is a reason for seatbelts. You never know when a deer or an animal is going to jump out. You don't know when another driver is going to have a heart attack. You never know," said Glen Mansfield from St. Paul.
About 500 people die on Minnesota roads every year and 200 of them die not wearing seat belts. Safety experts estimate this law could immediately save 30 lives every year.
Minnesota already has a very high seat belt compliance rate. About 87 percent buckle up. But that means 13 percent of drivers and passengers don't, which is about 700,000 people.
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