Law enforcement to be on the lookout for teens without seat belts

For the next few weeks, local law enforcement will be on the lookout for teens driving without seat belts.

From Feb. 27 to March 12, law enforcement across Kansas will participate in an aggressive enforcement in and around schools to both educate and enforce the restraint laws. This initiative is part of a program called Seatbelts Are For Everyone (S.A.F.E.), a student-driven, community-based law enforcement project which promotes and rewards seat belt use among Kansas teens while encouraging law enforcement to enforce the restraint laws.

A news release from the Fort Scott Police Department said that in 2009, 23,706 teens were involved in automobile crashes. Forty-five of those teens succumbed to their injuries. Seventy-five percent of those teens were not restrained, and this is an unacceptable number, the release said.

It appears from early 2010 crash reports results, the numbers will not look any better in 2011. So in an effort to change this trend, the FSPD will participate in this seat belt enforcement. The FSPD will conduct the S.A.F.E. Saturation Patrol March 1-4, the release said.

The S.A.F.E. program is currently part of more than 100 high schools in 27 counties in Kansas. Two years ago, the Crawford County Sheriff's Department and local law enforcement implemented the first S.A.F.E. program. Crawford County now enjoys one of the highest seat belt usage rates among teens, but the telling statistic is the county has worked 10 rollover crashes last year involving teens and nine out of 10 resulted in little or no injuries due to the occupants being properly restrained, the release said.

Fort Scott and Uniontown high schools have S.A.F.E. programs in place for the first time this year. The program incorporates education through school assemblies and safety messages, incentives through prize drawings and efforts by local law enforcement agencies to carry out the Kansas seat belt law. Kansas ranks 42nd in the nation in seat belt use.

A recent survey of seatbelt use among FSHS students showed that 69 percent of students use their seat belt when traveling in a vehicle -- a number that also happens to be the average among high school students in Kansas. The goal of the program at FSHS is to increase that percentage, through educational awareness, to 90 percent by April. The S.A.F.E. team at FSHS consists of 13 students.

The FSPD asks that everyone buckle up, every time, no matter how long the trip and to make sure all occupants in the vehicle are belted.