Elk Grove Police To Aggressively Enforce Seat Belt Law

Keep you and your family safe and $132 in your wallet by making sure everyone wears their seat belts for every trip, so says the Elk Grove Police Department.

Fines and fees have gone from under $100 previously to $132 this year for first time adult seat belt violations. For children under 16, the fine is now $435 for the first time offense.

No warnings will be given out, as local officers be aggressively enforcing the state’s occupant protection laws. The Click It or Ticket campaign relies on heavy enforcement and public education as a means to help save lives on California’s roadways.

“Seat belts save thousands of lives every year,” Elk Grove Police Chief Robert Lehner said. “Buckling up will not only save you a heavy fine, it will also save your life and the lives of those you love. We’re not giving warnings. It’s Click It or Ticket.”

Currently California has a seat belt usage rate of 95.7 percent, but that still means over one half million people are not buckling up. Properly restrained drivers, passengers and children have a 50 percent better chance of surviving a crash than unbelted occupants. Those ejected from vehicles in crashes or roll-overs are up to 35 times more likely to die than restrained occupants.

“Buckling up just makes sense,” Christopher J. Murphy, Director of the California Office of Traffic Safety said. “It takes only two seconds for an action that can make the difference whether you or your family gets home today.”

Funding to support California ’s Click It or Ticket campaign was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.