‘Seat-Belt Law Begins to Click’

I haven’t written a letter to the editor of any newspaper since moving to California from a small town in Pennsylvania a dozen years ago, yet I feel an urge to commend you and your staff for the front-page article (Dec. 28), “California Seat-Belt Law Begins to Click.”

There is not enough said, or written, about the wisdom of the individual who insures the safety of himself and his family by seeing to it that each seat belt is securely in place before the family auto rolls even one inch down the driveway. Our children learned the importance of safety belt use long before any legislative solons brought the subject to the forefront.

Since I drive approximately 45,000 miles each year for business purposes, you can well imagine what I have seen, and even experienced, on this state’s highways. With every accident I happen to witness, with each close encounter that I have while behind the wheel, my decision to buckle up is continuously reinforced.

This brings me to the point of my letter. Since automobile accidents are so often reported by the media, radio and television included, why not have the reporters take their stories one step further and find the answer to the question: “Who had their seat belts on and who did not?”

The traffic accidents that are covered are usually ones that involved major injuries and fatalities, and when reading or hearing about such an accident, I, for one, would appreciate an answer to that burning question, as the story seems incomplete without it.

With the enactment of the seat-belt legislation, I really expected the media to begin including this information when reporting on an accident, if it could be ascertained for sure. I have not, as of yet, seen this reported in any item on a traffic accident.

What better way could there be to impress upon our highly mobile populace the necessity of making sure that our seat belts are properly in place whenever driving or riding in an automobile?

RAND J. FEURA

Santee