by Keith Hood

Created on: June 13, 2009   Last Updated: June 16, 2009

I do not believe that mandatory seat belt laws violate individual rights. Here in the Beautiful state of Georgia, we have proof in the Sweet Potato Pies, that not only seat belts save lives, but car seats and booster seats also saves lives; no matter what the simple minded of individual rights believe. Also here in Georgia, we have a law stating that no new private passenger automobile manufactured after January 1, 1964 shall be sold to the general public in this state, unless such automobile shall be equipped with two sets of safety belts for the front seat thereof. The safety belts may be installed by the manufacturer prior to delivery to the dealer, or they may be installed by the dealer.

I also believe that seat belt use is higher in states with basic enforcement laws compared to those with non-basic enforcement laws. Basic law enforcement is not just for raising adult safety belt use, but also for increasing the number of non-adults who are protected by body restraints. In my own research, I have proven that when I buckle up, 100% of children and non-children are also buckled. Otherwise, the vehicle of which I control will not move. Moreover, when it comes to saving someone life, I could care less about whether a law violates individual rights.

According to reports, in 1997, the Duluth Police Department in Georgia partnered with Duluth High School and a local Chick-fil-A restaurant, to combat the rising death and injuries of teen driving. The program uses a reward system for belted teen drivers.

Through this program, all public services of the county or jurisdiction arrive at a local high school prior to the release of students for the day. Public safety officials stand at or near the exits of the parking lot and handout Chick-fil-A food coupons to all belted drivers and passengers. If a driver or passenger is not belted, the occupants of the vehicle are warned but no citations are given. A follow-up program allows officers to stand at the same location on a different day and issue citations for non-compliance of the belt laws.

This approach was designed to enforce consistent use of seat belts among teen drivers and occupants through the following objectives:

Conduct Chick-fil-A programs in all 27 counties that have a Chick-fil-A.

Empower 72 Law enforcement agencies to partner with the corporate sponsor.

Encourage all 121 Chick-fil-A stores to actively participate at the checkpoints,
track the progress of coupon distribution and checkpoint locations and
reduce the number of injuries and deaths to teen drivers resulting from non-compliance with seat belt laws.

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