KPD e-News Release: Kingsport Police Stress Motor Vehicle Occupant Protection with Seat Belt Checkpoint

	Kingsport Police Department David Quillin, Chief of Police 200 Shelby Street • Kingsport, TN 37660 http://Police.KingsportTN.gov • www.KingsportPDBlog.com
NEWS RELEASE
SUBJECT:		Kingsport Police Stress Motor Vehicle Occupant Protection with Seat Belt Checkpoint
DATE:		September 5, 2017

GENERAL NARRATIVE
With the passing of Labor Day for another year and summer drawing to a close, the Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO) “100 Days of Summer Heat” and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) “Click it or Ticket” campaigns are also wrapping up. But the Kingsport Police Department continues to stress that occupant protection in motor vehicles is of critical importance 365 days a year. In 2015, seat belt use in passenger vehicles saved an estimated 13,941 lives nationwide. That same year, seatbelts could have saved 2,804 additional lives if everyone had chosen to buckle up. Many Americans understand the lifesaving value of the seat belt – the national use rate is at 90.1 percent – but nearly 27.5 million people still don’t buckle up. In the State of Tennessee, a violation of the seatbelt law is considered a primary offense, meaning that if an officer observes a motorist not wearing a seat belt, the officer may stop and cite the motorist for the seatbelt violation without observing any other offenses. Wearing a seat belt can easily make the difference in a motorist being seriously injured or killed in a crash versus literally walking away from the crash with minor injuries or completely unscathed. The Kingsport Police Department encourages ALL occupants of ALL motor vehicles to wear their seat belt ALL of the time. It is the law, but more importantly, it might just save a life. To serve as a reminder, on the afternoon of Thursday, September 7, 2017, K.P.D. will be conducting a Seat Belt Checkpoint at an undisclosed location in the City of Kingsport.