Law Enforcement Issue More Than 1800 Tickets During Seat Belt Campaign

(KNSI) – A recent statewide seat belt enforcement campaign resulted in law enforcement issuing more than 1,800 tickets. The Minnesota Department of Safety Office of Traffic Safety conducted the Click it or Ticket campaign from September 19th to 30th.

According to the Department of Public Safety, 1,805 seat belt citations and 73 child seat tickets were issued by 319 law enforcement agencies in the two-week campaign.

The Department of Public Safety says there have been 80 unbelted deaths through October 10th compared to 78 at this time in 2020 and higher than 2019’s total of 54. Figures released by the state show unbelted deaths are also contributing to a deadly year on the roads, with 380 fatal crashes compared to 313 reported at this time in 2020 and 282 reported in 2019.

Campaign History:

In 2020, 307 agencies reported 2,664 seat belt citations and 64 child restraint citations.
In 2019, 323 agencies reported 4,415 seat belt citations and 96 child restraint citations.
In 2018, 319 agencies reported 4,610 seat belt citations and 140 child restraint citations.
A complete list of agencies participating in the Click It or Ticket campaign is available online.

Seat Belt Citations by Agency:

In the Twin Cities metro area, agencies with the most seat belt citations included:

St. Paul Police Department 229
Minnesota State Patrol – District 2400 (Oakdale) 80
Minnesota State Patrol – District 2500 (Golden Valley) 71
White Bear Lake Police Department 35
Savage Police Department 33
Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office 29
Anoka Police Department 23
Richfield Police Department 22
Minnetonka Police Department 21

In Greater Minnesota, agencies with the most citations included:

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2700 (Duluth) 164

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2900 (Detroit Lakes) 139

Minnesota State Patrol – District 3100 (Virginia) 65

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2100 (Rochester) 60

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2600 (St. Cloud) 53

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2800 (Brainerd) 47

Duluth Police Department 46

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2300 (Marshall) 46

Minnesota State Patrol – District 3200 (Thief River Falls) 45

Minnesota State Patrol – District 2200 (Mankato) 30

Moorhead Police Department 28

Houston County Sheriff’s Office 21

Unbelted Fatalities by Year, Jan. 1 through Oct. 10
Year Number Percent*
2016 51 17.5%
2017 51 18.2%
2018 67 22.9%
2019 54 19.1%
2020 78 25.2%
2021 80 21.1%
*This is the percentage of total fatalities for each year to date that involved lack of seat belts.

In Minnesota, all children must be in a child restraint until they are 4 feet 9 inches tall, or at least age 8, whichever comes first.

Rear-facing seats – All infants and toddlers should ride in a rear-facing car seat until they have reached the height and weight limits allowed by the car seat manufacturer.

Forward-facing seats with harness – Toddlers and preschoolers who have reached the height and weight limits of the rear-facing car seat should use a forward-facing seat with harness until they reach the weight limit of the harness allowed by the car seat manufacturer.

Booster seats – School-age children who have reached the height and weight limits of the forward-facing seat can sit on a booster seat. It must be used with a lap and shoulder belt.

Seat belts – Children 8 years old or have reached 4 feet 9 inches tall can buckle up with seat belts. Your child is ready for an adult seat belt when they can sit with their back against the vehicle seat, knees bent comfortably and completely over the vehicle seat edge without slouching, and feet touching the floor.

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