Beginning October 31st through November 4th, the Liberal Police Department will join other Kansas law enforcement agencies to stop what has been likened to an epidemic in Kansas. In 2014, 28 children aged 0-17 lost their lives due to car crashes in Kansas. Sadly, half of those children were not wearing their seat belts and 8 of them were ejected from the vehicle.
According to the 2016 Kansas observational seat belt survey, children are much more likely to be buckled up if the driver is wearing a seat belt. If the driver is buckled, about 96% of the children are restrained. If the driver is not buckled, only about 27% of the observed children were buckled.
Starting on Halloween, October 31st through November 4th, law enforcement across Kansas will be extra vigilant when patrolling around schools. Officers have educated and warned drivers for more than 20 years regarding the importance of using seat belts. There should be no surprises when it comes to this enforcement effort. Officers will issue citations to anyone who does not buckle up.