(WWJ) Attention seatbelt slackers: Michigan State Police will be out looking for you in the coming weeks.
From November 9 through November 29, 2020, troopers from the Second District -- which covers most of metro Detroit -- are joining law enforcement from across the state to enforce Michigan’s seatbelt law as part of the "Click it or Ticket" campaign.
The crackdown will include the Thanksgiving holiday, which can be a dangerous time for driving in our area.
During Thanksgiving weekend 2019, there were seven fatalities on Michigan roads, according to MSP. Four of the seven deaths involved drivers and passengers not wearing seatbelts.
State police also noted they have have seen a lot of ejections from crashes in the district this year, which can be prevented by wearing a seatbelt.
What is the law? Michigan law requires drivers, front seat passengers and passengers 15 and younger in any seating position to be buckled up. In Michigan, the penalty for a seatbelt violation is a fine of $65.
Regarding kids: Children must be in a car seat or booster seat until they are 8 years old or 4’9” tall, and children under 4 years old must be in the back seat.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2019, 9,466 unbuckled passenger vehicle occupants were killed in crashes in the United States. While that was a decrease from 2018, the NHTSA an early study for 2020 suggests that during the COVID-19 public health emergency, driving patterns and behaviors changed significantly. Of those drivers who remained on the roads, there was more risky behavior, including people not wearing seatbelts.