Editorial: Improving traffic safety

Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007 | 6:58 a.m.

The mother of a young man who was not wearing a seat belt when he died in a vehicle crash this year says she will continue to champion a law that would allow police to stop vehicles if the occupants aren't wearing seat belts.

In a story Sunday in the Las Vegas Sun, Kelly Thomas-Boyers said she was disappointed that the Nevada Legislature failed to pass a measure this year that would have made failure to wear a seat belt a primary offense. Nevada law requires seat belt use, but people can be cited only after an officer stops them for a different violation.

Thomas-Boyers figured her son's death in March would gain state lawmakers' attention - Adam Thomas, 21, was an intern for state Sen. Mike Schneider, D-Las Vegas, at the time. The bill narrowly passed the Senate, but it was bottled up in the Assembly and never received a floor vote.

Since the session ended, Thomas-Boyers has asked each of the state's 63 lawmakers how they stand on the issue. But only eight have replied, she told Sun reporter David McGrath Schwartz, an illustration of how difficult it is for citizens who don't have powerful lobbyists in their corners to gain lawmakers' attention.

We continue to support making it a primary offense under Nevada law if someone isn't wearing a seat belt. The law already requires, for example, the use of infant or booster seats for young children and requires helmets for motorcyclists. Making failure to use seat belts by all motor vehicle occupants a primary offense just makes sense - and would save untold lives.