Seat belts and kids

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

Just what we need - more laws, more cops, more judges, more lawyers. They all add up to fewer freedoms. It's all for the children or in the name of safety, and that's supposed to make it ok. This country is outta control.

 

[Fred(DrivingSchool)Kinder]

100 MPH and over you car can be confiscated and you spend the night in Jail. I understand the goal but feel the process is abusive. Good reason to do "Viper Days" and other open track events.

 

[Supercharged Vipermad]

A news story in the paper today said that the US Supreme Court ruled today that the police are entitled to arrest someone (cuff 'em and take 'em to the station for booking) for violation of a seatbelt law. It seems that a soccer mom was driving her kids around without seatbelts or child seats when she was stopped, arrested, cuffed, and taken to the station for booking. Apparently, she didn't serve any time in the slammer, as she was let go on bail (I think that she posted bond, similar to what we sometimes must do when we get a speeding ticket).

You'd think that Mom and Dad would learn from the experience and think to themselves "jeez, you know, maybe I really should buckle up...even if I am stupid enough to not wear a belt, maybe I should strap my kids in so they have a much better chance to grow up." Well, not a chance. The irresponsible whiners sued the cops. Fortunately, as stated at the outset, the Supremes told 'em to stop whining and threw the case out.

If any of you folks out there don't wear seatbelts, think that through for a minute. And if you have your kids in the car and don't strap 'em in, you should really consider the possible consequences. And I'm not talking about maybe getting arrested.

 

[Ulysses]

The irony of it all is the result of these people's idiocy. It has opened up a whole new can of worms and makes it tougher for the rest of us. The law is now aware that they can arrest you for minor infractions.

Minor traffic offense arrest

 

[Supercharged Vipermad]

Don't much trust cops, myself. I'm a white suburban boy who was always taught to trust Officer Friendly. Well, no more. I hear about and see too much abuse by the boys in blue. Not all of 'em, but enough of them for it to be a real problem. Therefore, I don't like to see the police get more power...it's an invitation to abuse.

Nonetheless, I was glad to see that pathetic excuse of a parent have her lawsuit thrown out. Man, lady, you endanger your kid then screech about it when you get pinched. And you only spent 1 hour in the can (according to NBC network news tonight), so get over it. Maybe you'll buckle up now. The kids, too.

And if the woman had an accident and one of her little urchins went through the windshield, I bet mommy would have sued the car maker, the other driver, the manufacturer of the seat belt (well, no one put a big orange sticker on the belt "you should buckle up your kids"), the driver who stopped at the scene 3 weeks after the accident because he had a flat tire, and most of the rest of the world. Well, for god sakes, it HAD to be someone else's fault because it sure had nothing to do with mommy failing to belt the kid in.

Finally, the story I read on this noted that you cannot be arrested (as opposed to ticketed) for merely a speeding violation. That would be a 4th Amendment search and seizure violation and I got the impression from the story that the Supremes previously decided that. If you are going fast enough, of course, they'll charge you with something else and that will allow 'em to cuff you and take you in.