The Orange County Sheriff’s Department announced on May 11 that it will increase patrols to enforce seat belt use as part of the Click It or Ticket campaign, which runs from May 18 to 31. The department said officers will focus on ensuring both drivers and passengers are buckled up, including proper child safety seat use.
The campaign aims to remind residents about the importance of wearing seat belts and securing children in appropriate car seats. Officials say this effort is intended to improve community safety by reducing injuries and fatalities from vehicle crashes.
“Our priority is protecting the people in our community. Wearing a seat belt or properly securing children in car seats or a booster seat gives everyone a better chance of surviving a crash,” Traffic Bureau Sergeant Kyle Ishii said. “We want every trip – short or long – to end safely, so please buckle up, every time.”
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2023 there were 10,484 people killed in crashes across the United States who were not wearing a seat belt. In California alone, there were 780 unrestrained people killed that year—including 24 children—and unrestrained child fatalities increased by 4.3 percent from 2022 to 2023.
California law requires all children under two years old to ride in rear-facing car seats unless they weigh at least forty pounds or are at least forty inches tall. Children under eight must be secured in an appropriate car or booster seat and may not ride in the front unless no rear forward-facing seat is available. Those eight years old and older—or at least four feet nine inches tall—may use a booster but must wear a properly fitted safety belt at minimum.
Parents and caregivers are encouraged by authorities to keep children in rear- or forward-facing seats as long as possible and use the Five-Step Test for determining when their child can safely switch to using only a safety belt.
The Orange County Health Care Agency offers free inspections and assistance with installing car seats through its car seat safety program; more information can be found on their website OC Health.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department advances community safety through resources like missing persons alerts, emergency preparedness programs, impartial law enforcement guided by integrity and respect, oversight of state laws such as AB 481 for military equipment oversight and SB 384 for sex offender registration, with nearly four thousand staff serving various locations throughout Orange County according to the official website.
