Teens paying with their lives for not buckling up

Kristen Laffler has a Web site aimed at helping teens drive more safely. A close friend of the Eastside High student was killed in a single-car crash 18 months ago. (Patrick Collard/Staff) e-mail this story print this story Related Related stories: • Teen driving facts and statistics Previous coverage • Most people killed in crashes didn't wear seat belts Related Web site • Kristen Laffler's teen driving site

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It so upset the Eastside High student that she created a Web site to help teens with their driving. Two years later, Laffler is wondering why so many teens die in South Carolina traffic accidents and why most of those who die aren't wearing seat belts.

One hundred and fourteen teenagers died in automobile accidents across the state in 2004, up from 101 in 2003, according to state Department of Public Safety data obtained by The Greenville News.

Twenty of the 114 were wearing seat belts, compared with 23 the year before. None of the teens killed in Greenville County were wearing seat belts. "That's crazy," Laffler said.

Greenville Police Chief Willie Johnson said, "We're pushing hard trying to do everything we can to get the message across to our young people. But apparently since we see the numbers rising, we're not getting it across to everybody. Somehow we've got to work with them more."

Laffler said, "Being a teen in high school and riding with other friends, a lot of them do not wear seat belts. I just try to encourage it every time I'm in the car."

Parents said they were frustrated at the numbers but not surprised.

"I just don't understand -- where is the rage?" asked David Hammond, whose son graduated from Eastside High last year. "Why aren't people getting upset at this?"

Cynthia Tisdale, an English teacher at Berea High School, said she thinks many students believe they are invincible.

"They really don't believe they are going to die," she said. "It comes through in all kinds of other risky behaviors that they engage in. They really don't believe it will happen to them."

One student, she said, even wrote a paper arguing that seat belts are dangerous because they can trap vehicle occupants.

"He knew of some odd cases where people had been trapped in a car," she said. "He took that to mean you shouldn't ever wear a seat belt, which is a totally illogical argument. That's teenagers."

Laffler said students list several reasons for not wearing seat belts."They'll say, 'I don't want to mess up my hair or squish my outfit or something,'" she said.

"I think they are stupid reasons. If they were wearing it, it will save their life."

Lance Cpl. Dan Marsceau of the state Highway Patrol said he has heard all of the excuses.

"Some just don't think it's important," he said. "Some don't worry about paying the small fine if they are charged with it. And some think if the crash happens they'll have an opportunity to do something at the last minute. Those are arguments we try to change. It's extremely critical that they buckle up every time."

South Carolina teens make up about 6 percent of all drivers in the state but are involved in about 13 percent of accidents, state safety records show. Sixteen-year-old drivers are four times more likely than adults to get in a car wreck and three times as likely to die from one, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Robert Johansen of Travelers Rest was in an accident last year with his two children. Though he was in a seat belt, neither of his children were.

The face of his 13-year-old daughter went through the windshield, he said, while his 9-year-old son hit a headrest and loosened some teeth. "My kids could have been killed," he said.

"We feel like God protected us. I would say to teenagers, listen to your parents when they tell you to put your seat belts on. They are trying to protect you. And I would say to parents, always take the time to make sure your kids' seat belts are on, even if you're in a hurry."

Automobile accidents kill more teenagers than any other cause, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Of the nearly 600 teens seriously injured in accidents last year, state accident figures show, almost half didn't wear their seat belts. Yet among the almost 32,000 who weren't injured in accidents, almost all did wear seat belts.

Jean Osteen, a driving instructor at Budget Driving School in Greenville, sees about 500 teens come to the school each year. Some view seat belts as an inconvenience, she said.

"I've heard them say, 'It makes me feel uncomfortable,'" she said. "Or, 'I can't reach my CD player,' or "I can't reach for something in the back seat,' or 'I'm only going for a short distance.' What they don't understand is that more people are involved in traffic accidents five minutes from their home than far off."

She said one method her school and others use to get the teens' attention is a presentation by the Greenville County Coroner's Office. Graphic slides and facts about local accidents usually have an impact, she said.

"I hear the kids making comments to themselves when they don't realize we're listening, talking about how they will never get into a car again without a seat belt once they see what actually happens to people," she said.

Deputy Coroner Ken Coppins said eight teens died in Greenville County accidents involving automobiles last year. One was a pedestrian, he said, one was on a motorcycle without a helmet and another drove an ATV. The rest were in vehicles and didn't wear seat belts.

"I don't think they see the need," he said.

Coppins said observations of local high schools show an "astonishingly low" percentage of seat belt use by students.

The Highway Patrol last year handed out 6,444 tickets to unbuckled teens. But officials said most of those were likely secondary violations, meaning troopers didn't stop the teens just for not wearing seat belts.

The law allows officers to stop any motorist 17 or younger for a seat belt violation. Legislation being debated now would allow officers to stop adults for seat belt violations.

Johnson said most of the tickets to teens handed out by his officers for seat belt violations are secondary charges because the police force doesn't have the resources to hunt only for unbelted teenagers.

Hammond said one answer lies with parents. In a state that ranks near the bottom of the nation in seat belt usage, parents need to model seat belt use more if they expect their children to buckle up, he said.

"Where are the parents?" he asked. "Why aren't they teaching it? Or do they have the same sort of apathy toward it?"