Between February 24 and March 7th, the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office will join other Kansas Law Enforcement to stop what has been an epidemic for the past several years. In 2013, 31 teens lost their lives and 240 were seriously injured due to car crashes in Kansas; 74% of those teens were not properly restrained.

In an effort to change this trend, law enforcement will increase patrols in and around school zones, watching for motorists and passengers who have made the choice to not buckle up.  They will also be looking for other dangerous driving habits such as texting and driving, speeding, etc... Those who are observed violating Kansas Traffic Laws will be issued a citation. 

There should be no surprises when it comes to this enforcement effort. Officers will issue citations to any individual who chooses not to obey the traffic laws.

This enforcement effort works hand in hand with our S.A.F.E. (Seatbelts Are For Everyone Program).  “Ideally, we would not have to issue any tickets at all, but we would much rather do that than notify a parent that their child died in a car crash,” stated Cherokee County Sheriff David Groves.

The SAFE Program is a student run seatbelt program in our high schools which focuses on education, enforcement and positive incentives for wearing seatbelts.

Partners in the Cherokee County SAFE Program include Mike Carpino Ford, Jay Hatfield Chevrolet, State Farm Insurance – Agent Terry Bessman, Columbus Telephone Company, Labette Bank, Cherokee  County Attorney Nathan Coleman, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Department of Transportation, AAA of Kansas and the Kansas Trauma Program, Kansas Department of Health and Environment and the Kansas Traffic Safety Resource Office.