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Click It or Ticket: Police to Focus on Seat Belt Law This Week
In recent years, collisions on California roads have left 600 people dead who, authorities say, would be alive today if they wore their seatbelts. In an attempt to engrain that message on residents throughout the state, officers across the state this week are participating in a "Seat Belt Enforcement Crackdown." A regular seat belt ticket runs $142 and will increase $3 later this Summer. Think it's just about making money? That may be, but officials say it's not only for your safety -- you have a 50% greater chance of dying in a crash when not wearing one -- but to protect taxpayer money, which pays for uninsured drivers sent to the hospital. Anyway you put it, putting on a seatbelt takes a second to do.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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