State mandates use of seat belts for all passengers
Kristen Jones
Farmer Staff Writer
Seat belt use is officially mandated by North Dakota law. This means that law enforcement officers now have the right, and responsibility, to pull over drivers who are not wearing their seat belt.
Lieutenant Ryan Duletski, Northwest Regional Commander of the North Dakota Highway Patrol (NDHP), said, “On Aug. 1, North Dakota’s seat belt law is moving from secondary to primary enforcement. Primary enforcement means no other violation is required for officers to stop and issue a seat belt citation.”
He explained some of the reasoning behind the change in the law, saying, “Seat belts are the single most effective safety device to prevent death and injury in a motor vehicle crash. Research shows having a primary law over a secondary law can result in a 10-12 percent increase in observed seat belt use and reduce passenger vehicle driver deaths by 7 percent. The number one contributing factor in motor vehicle crash deaths in North Dakota is not wearing a seat belt.”