Since August first, North Dakota’s primary seat belt law has been in place. Law enforcement across the state can now pull someone over for not wearing a seatbelt and issue citations to them.
Wade Kadrmas is Safety and Education Officer for the North Dakota Highway Patrol. He says they’ve already seen several stops relating to seatbelt use.
"During the month of August, troopers have been asked to just issue warnings if they stop the individual solely for not wearing a seatbelt, and then moving forward after August, we will start issuing citations to those individuals."
Kadrmas is reminding people that new laws in North Dakota require everyone regardless of age to wear a seatbelt. He says the driver could get a citation if anyone in the car is unbelted.
"Prior to the update to the law, you know, it was difficult for our law enforcement officers to determine the age of individuals who were under the age of 18. I think the current law now is, I don't want to say easily enforced, but I think it's more fairly enforced across the board."
Kadrmas hopes that as people become aware of the laws, the small number of seatbelt stops will continue to go down.
"The highway patrol has taken a strong stance on the use of seatbelts. Just about every day, troopers see the benefits of occupants in vehicles wearing seatbelts. So, we'll continue our strong stance on it. After August we'll continue to issue citations for individuals not wearing seatbelts."