THURSDAY'S EDITORIAL

By T&D Staff

T&D headlines help make case for seat belt law

THE ISSUE: Seat belt law

OUR OPINION: Legislation not ideal, but it should be approved

The headlines from The Times and Democrat of Feb. 6 tell a familiar story.

"Newberry teen dies in wreck on I-26."

"3 killed in head-on collision."

The Newberry teenager died in Orangeburg County. The three teens died in a crash in Charleston.

A common denominator: None was wearing a safety belt.

According to the S.C. Department of Public Safety, as of Feb. 6, 83 people had died on South Carolina highways. Of the 67 motor vehicle occupants who have died, 47 were not wearing seat belts.

While it is no certainty that a safety belt will save a life in the event of a crash, the odds of surviving are greatly improved. In the Charleston crash, the teens ran head-on into a tractor-trailer. The accident may not have been survivable.

In the Orangeburg County crash, however, the teen was partially ejected from the vehicle. At a minimum, the belt would have prevented that.

Getting more South Carolinians to buckle up is the purpose behind a proposed law that would put teeth into our seat-belt statute. Thankfully, the state Senate has gotten past long-standing roadblocks to belt legislation and has given its approval.

The bill gives police authority to stop adult drivers for not wearing seat belts. Under current law, adult drivers not wearing seat belts can be cited only if they are stopped for another offense or if children in the car are not properly restrained. The seat belt bill and the current law allow fines of $25.

The House is expected to approve the bill and Gov. Mark Sanford, who is supporter of even tougher belt legislation, should sign it.

The Sanford criticism is that the legislation would be more meaningful if it didn't include restrictions such as no reporting belt offenses to insurance companies and no sharing with juries in civil cases whether a person was in violation.

The governor wanted a tougher bill, Sanford spokesman Will Folks told The Associated Press.

"Do we want fig-leaf legislation that covers up enough of the problem just so you can say you're doing something or do you want to advance reforms that make a difference in the outcomes we all are looking for, which is safer roads and fewer fatalities?" Folks said.

Insurance companies and juries should know if drivers aren't buckled up, Folks said. "Admitting seat belt evidence in the courtroom would go a lot further in influencing behavior than a nominal fine."

As much as the governor is right, the reality of politics is that to gain approval of the change to a primary law on seat belts, compromise is necessary. Putting teeth into the law by allowing law officers to stop motorists for not wearing belts is a positive step.

Since most people will obey the law, belt usage should increase — and traffic deaths should decline. We can certainly hope.

E-mail this page

Print version

Discuss this story

Letters to the editor

Back to the top