News release from St. Louis County Police

The St. Louis County Police Department announced today they are joining with other law enforcement agencies on May 18 through May 31, 2009 in an aggressive "Click It or Ticket" mobilization to crack down on Missouri's safety belt law violators and to reduce highway fatalities. It is estimated that nearly one in four Missourians still fail to regularly wear their safety belts when driving or riding in a motor vehicle.

Failure to wear a safety belt can be deadly. In 2007, a driver in a Missouri traffic crash has a 1 in 32 chance of being killed if they were not wearing a seat belt. In cases where the driver wore a seat belt, their chance of being killed was 1 in 1,294.

St. Louis County Police Chief Jerry Lee stated "The regular usage of seat belts is the single most effective way to protect people and reduce fatalities in motor vehicle crashes. Our department has participated in this program in the past and deem it necessary to increase awareness in drivers and passengers."

For information on Missouri seatbelt usage, visit www.saveMOlives.com.

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