Bainbridge police add ‘Click It or Ticket’ patrols

Published 3:19 pm Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Bainbridge police will join officers throughout Kitsap County in conducting extra patrols for this year’s statewide “Click It or Ticket” campaign.

The annual enforcement campaign runs through May 31. Drivers can expect to see extra seat belt patrols, which will include an emphasis on children who are not properly restrained.

Authorities note that motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of unintentional deaths among children in the United States.

Between 2010 and 2012 in Washington state, 26 child passengers age 12 and younger died, and another 122 were seriously injured as a result of traffic crashes. Officials said the majority of these tragedies likely could have been avoided had these children been properly restrained, as dictated by Washington state law.

“Washington state law requires child passengers to be properly restrained until the motor vehicle safety belt fits properly,”

said Cesi Velez, Project Manager for Washington Child Passenger Safety. “It also requires children under the age of 13 to ride in the back seat.”

In Kitsap County, the Bainbridge Island, Bremerton, Naval Base Kitsap, Port Orchard, Poulsbo and Suquamish police departments, the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office and the Washington State Patrol will be teaming up and participating in the extra patrols, with the support of the Kitsap County Traffic Safety Task Force.

The extra patrols are part of Target Zero, which aims to end traffic deaths and serious injuries in Washington by 2030.

For more information, visit www.targetzero.com.