The St.
Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office is participating in the Click It or Ticket
campaign, which runs from May 23 through June 5. On May 24, 2016, deputies from the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office, the
Calvert County Sheriff’s Office and troopers from the Maryland State Police,
Leonardtown and Prince Frederick Barracks, conducted seat belt compliance
checks on both sides of the Thomas Johnson Bridge, as part of the
“Border2Border” Seat Belt Compliance Initiative.
During
the operation, a total of 44 vehicles were stopped, resulting in seven seat
belt citations, 17 cell phone citations, and two safety equipment repair
orders.
The
Sheriff's Office also conducted seat belt compliance checks at all three public
high schools, stopping 11 vehicles. Those vehicle stops resulted in eight seat
belt citations, one cell phone citation, two registration violations, and two
safety equipment repair orders.
In
2014, more than 92 percent of drivers and front-seat passengers in Maryland
were observed to be wearing their seat belts, but crash data shows that an
alarming percentage of people killed in crashes were unbelted. Each year, in
Maryland, more than 120 unbelted drivers and passengers are killed. Maryland
crash data shows those who were reported
as unbelted at the time of their crash were 67 percent more likely to sustain a
moderate to fatal injury. The data also shows that seat belts reduce the risk
of moderate-to-critical injury by 50 percent.
Even
low-speed crashes can produce serious injuries or fatalities to unbelted
vehicle occupants. Your seatbelt is your
best defense against unsafe drivers – buckling up is the single most important
step you can take to save your life in the event of a crash.
Click it or Ticket is a major component
of Maryland's Toward Zero Deaths campaign, which focuses on promoting seat belt
use and preventing impaired driving, aggressive driving, and distracted
driving. For more information on the
Toward Zero Deaths campaign, please visit towardzerodeathsmd.com. For more
information on the Click It or Ticket campaign visit nhtsa.gov.
