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Injured motorists could be liable under seatbelt bill
Riverton Ranger ^ | 2-5-05 | Robert W. Black

Posted on 02/04/2005 10:12:56 PM PST by rwh

CHEYENNE (AP) — A House committee debated Thursday morning whether it should strengthen the seat belt law by allowing motorists to be held partly responsible for their crash injuries when they fail to buckle up. The measure also would allow a driver to be pulled over solely for not using a seat belt and would increase the fine for drivers from $25 to $50 and for passengers from $10 to $25. “This is a bill that’s not going to stop accidents, but it will reduce fatalities,” said the sponsor, Rep. Jerry Iekel, R-Sheridan. Under current law, authorities can only cite a motorist for violation of the seat belt law if the driver was pulled over for another offense. But drawing the most interest from the House Judiciary Committee was the provision that could allow partial blame for injuries to be assigned to vehicle occupants who don’t buckle up. Current law prohibits a defendant from introducing evidence that a person injured in an accident was partly at fault for his injuries because he failed to wear a seat belt. “You would share in the division of responsibility,” Iekel told the panel. “It seems to fit with the intent of the bill ... that has to do with personal responsibility.” Brent Kunz, a lobbyist for State Farm Insurance Co., spoke in favor of the bill. “As a Wyomingite, I respect our way of life. I, too, would like to have the freedom and not have government restriction on what I can and can’t do, but with the seat belt law it’s a little bit different,” he said. The measure could save not only lives but costs to society and costs to insured drivers, he said. But Rep. Edward Buchanan, R-Torrington, wondered if the Legislature should shift responsibility away from a person who causes a crash. “Do you expect me to wear to wear a crash helmet too because of your negligence?” he said. “How far is the government going to go in making sure we’re safe in everything we do? ... How about adult car seats?” He suggested a better approach might be to further reward motorists for seat belt use when they’re convicted of other traffic violations. Currently, a person receives a $10 reduction of a fine if wearing a belt. Buchanan suggested increasing the credit to $30 or $40. The bill is House Bill 301.


TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: nannystate; seatbeltlaws; tortreform; wyoming
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To: Justanobody

whoops...I can't count.
Should be 5-8. Must sleep!


21 posted on 02/05/2005 1:47:48 AM PST by Just A Nobody
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To: rwh
Seatbelt laws are a waste of time.

We as a society have decided that going 70 MPH and getting to our destination faster is worth the trade off of a few deaths. "Safety" laws just make us feel a little less guilty about our decision.

Just make the maximum speed limit 25 MPH and the seatbelt issue goes away.

22 posted on 02/05/2005 6:31:43 AM PST by Tripleplay
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To: Justanobody
###Warning! Sarcasm ahead! Proceed at your own risk!###


OK, here's the plan:

1)George Bush "removes" all the Democrats from Congress.
2)Republicans repeal the Bill of Rights.
3)Police and military then prevent any citizen, especially members of the press, from complaining about frivolous things like "Too many people are dying in car accidents", or "There's too much corruption", or "We want our freedom back".
4)Once all the peasants are properly conditioned, we take away all their cars, along with the rest of their property, and issue everyone a small apartment, a job they can walk to, and a monthly allowance of food, and other luxuries like toilet paper.

Since everyone now has an equal share of everything they need, given to them through the wisdom of those in charge (George Bush and his underlings) happiness and prosperity will spread throughout the land, from sea to shining sea, and forever make a utopia of the United States of America.

###End sarcasm###
23 posted on 02/05/2005 10:02:40 AM PST by spinestein
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To: rwh
Go ahead............Make me!

I still don't use the damn things. They are worthless unless you install a racing harness and roll cage.

24 posted on 02/05/2005 10:04:39 AM PST by Cold Heat (What are fears but voices awry?Whispering harm where harm is not and deluding the unwary. Wordsworth)
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To: spinestein
Do Seatbelt Laws Save Lives?
25 posted on 02/07/2005 5:26:44 PM PST by Slyfox
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To: Slyfox

[We must accept that —even when armed with all the facts—some people will still choose risky behavior. Instead of saving us from ourselves, regulators should take a deep breath, allow beltless motorists to put themselves at risk, and go hassle the dangerous drivers.]

Yup.


26 posted on 02/07/2005 8:18:02 PM PST by spinestein
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To: Justanobody

10. TREES. We need to cut down ALL trees. Trees are always falling on people killing them. This is unacceptable. In the interest of everyone's safety tress need to be gone.


27 posted on 02/07/2005 8:28:22 PM PST by Veloxherc (To go up pull back, to go down pull back all the way.)
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