Colonel Kenneth L. Morckel
Superintendent
Ohio State Highway Patrol

On the evening of the first big snowfall this winter, Troopers responded to a one-car crash to find an alert and playful toddler strapped in his car seat. The unbelted parents of this child were not so lucky. The child’s father had lost control on an icy road and their vehicle rolled into a field, coming to a stop on its side. The father was ejected out of the front passenger side windshield and the mother was thrown into the rear passenger compartment.

Thankfully, no lives were lost in the crash, but it was clear to the responding troopers, emergency medical workers, and hospital staff that the mere click of two safety belts would have made a tremendous difference. All three were transported to a local hospital. The uninjured child was released, while the mother and father spent time in the hospital recovering from their extensive injuries.

This situation is witnessed time and again by troopers throughout Ohio. While I am thankful that many parents are using proper child restraints to protect their children in automobiles, I am alarmed that parents are not buckling up themselves. A statewide safety belt usage survey revealed that less than 67 percent of Ohio motorists are buckling up. This pales in comparison to many states that have safety belt usage rate of 80 percent or higher.

Once again, I am urging all Ohioans to buckle up. In an effort to save lives and reduce injuries, troopers will no longer issue warnings for not wearing a safety belt. Any driver who has enforcement contact with the Patrol and is not wearing a safety belt will be given a citation. Along with enforcement, the Patrol hopes to educate the public about safety belt usage by joining the national "What’s Holding You Back?" safety belt campaign.

There is simply no disputing that wearing safety belts save lives and reduce injury. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, wearing your safety belt doubles your chances of surviving a crash without serious injury. Children who are in proper car safety seats survive 90 percent of crashes.

Ohio has a secondary safety belt enforcement law, allowing fines for not wearing a safety belt only after the driver has been stopped for another enforcement contact. I hope this secondary enforcement law is not the reason Ohio’s percentage of motorists wearing their safety belts is so alarmingly low.

Why are so many Ohioans still not buckling up? I hear arguments that choosing to wear a safety belt is a personal decision. However, the belief that one person’s freedom ends when an individual infringes upon another person’s freedom applies to safety belt usage.

Society as a whole is affected by safety belt usage. Insurance and health care costs are significantly higher for crash victims who choose not to wear a safety belt. Health care providers spend valuable time and resources caring for patients who could have easily prevented or reduced their injuries with a click of their safety belt. In addition, priceless lives are lost.

The National Center for Statistics and Data finds that many of the motorists injured because they choose not to wear a safety belt do not have sufficient insurance. Taxpayers end up paying 85 percent of the health care costs for patients being treated for injuries as a result of not buckling up.

Another argument from opponents of safety belt laws is that safety belt enforcement will result in racially biased enforcement. This argument has absolutely no ground to stand on because a safety belt knows no race; it simply protects lives.

Unfortunately, safety belt usage does differ among races. National statistics indicate African American children are twice as likely as Caucasian children to be killed as a result of not wearing car safety restraints. Hispanic children are also statistically more likely to be killed or seriously injured than Caucasian children, as a result of not being properly restrained.

Once all the arguments have been heard, the underlying fact remains - safety belts save lives.

Buckle up! Safety belts can save the life of someone you know, or maybe even you. Our most precious resource, life, is at stake.

I can assure you the Ohio State Highway Patrol will have zero tolerance for any driver or front seat passenger not wearing a safety belt.

If you’re not wearing your safety belt – What’s holding you back?

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