Metropolitan Police Chief Charles H. Ramsey today
released the following statement on the success of the first three days of the
DC's Clickin'! child passenger safety enforcement and education
initiative for the District of Columbia:
"The Metropolitan Police issued 356 citations, and gave 10 new child safety seats to
motorists during checkpoints held Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Here in the District, we
are embracing the concept of zero tolerance for unbuckled children by using every means at
our disposal to make sure children are properly buckled in. No officer enjoys writing a
ticket, but we will issue as many as needed to keep kids safe.
"These impressive results are in addition to our everyday enforcement of the District's
child safety seat and seat belt laws -- the most comprehensive in the nation. Because of
our ongoing efforts, 80 percent of District drivers now buckle up. This week, Metropolitan
Police are making an extra effort to get everyone buckled up every time -- especially
children.
"Our message in the District of Columbia is clear: if anyone in a car is not properly
buckled up -- driver, passenger or child -- the driver will be stopped, ticketed, fined,
and assessed 2 points on their license. If they need a loaner car seat, we'll point them
in the right direction."
The DC's Clickin'! Coalition joined national and local safety
officials Monday to kick-off the week-long citywide
child safety seat and seat belt enforcement and education effort . District
of Columbia officials also announced an expansion of the city's efforts to give
parents and caregivers access to child safety seats and information through
the ground-breaking Project Safe Child car seat loaner program. Any District
resident who needs a car seat should call the project's hotline at 202-939-8017
between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. to find a loaner site near your home.
DC's Clickin'! -- a cooperative partnership including the
DC Department of Public Works , the
DC SAFE KIDS Coalition , the Department of
Emergency Medicine at The George Washington University Medical
Center , and the DC Metropolitan Police Department -- boosts child safety seat and seat belt
use by combining public education with law enforcement initiatives.
For additional information contact:
- Claire Sheahan
Will Taliaferro
202-338-8700