Indiana officers looking for seat belt violations

Law enforcement agencies across Indiana are looking for drivers who aren’t using their seat belts, in the national “Click It or Ticket” enforcement blitz which organized around Memorial Day weekend.

Running through June 4th, the campaign will have extra officers on overtime patrols making sure drivers and passengers are buckling up and children are properly secure.

According to the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, unbuckled motorists make up almost 40% of all passenger vehicle deaths in the state. In 2020, 226 unbuckled drivers and passengers were killed on Indiana roads – the second highest in the past decade. Young drivers, especially males, were the least likely to be buckled during a crash.

One of the focuses of this year’s campaign will be nighttime enforcement. That’s because in 2021, 57% of passenger vehicle occupants killed at night were not wearing their seat belts.

Drivers can be cited for lack of seat belt use, but also for each unbuckled passenger under the age of 16.

The overtime patrols are funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration with grants administered by ICJI.