Wednesday, March 12, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
CARSON CITY -- A proposed seat belt law, touted to save the lives of 30 motorists every year, appears to be on its death bed.
Assembly Bill 181 would allow police to stop a motorist who is not wearing a seat belt. At present, the officer can cite a driver for a seat belt violation only after the motorist is stopped for another infraction.
The Assembly Transportation Committee heard two hours of testimony Tuesday that the bill would prevent deaths and injuries but opponents called it another case of government intrusion and could be used by police for harassment.
Not much of a life
"It's not got much of a life," said committee vice chairman Tom Collins, D-North Las Vegas, after the hearing. "Its chances don't look very favorable."
Committee Chairwoman Vonne Chowning, D-Las Vegas, said the bill would have "gone down in flames" when it was first introduced. But she said there are "many more undecided (members) and more leaning towards passage" after the testimony Tuesday.
She said the tragic stories of injuries and deaths presented to the committee were "very convincing."
Paul Corbin, director of the state Office of Traffic Safety, said the bill would save lives, an estimated 30 people in Nevada each year.
He rejected the argument that this is Big Brother government sticking its nose in the personal business of individuals. He said the bill is no more intrusive than an officer stopping a motorist for a failed license plate light or a broken tail light.
But John Anderson, who is near 80 years old and said he has only about six months to live, told the committee, "I don't think I should be forced to fasten a seat belt. There is too much government."
Conservative groups such at the Independent American Party, Eagle Forum and Nevada Concerned Citizens lined up against the bill as did a number of ordinary citizens.
Many supporters
But law enforcement, auto makers, insurance companies and medical personnel supported the measure.
Nancy Harland of Washoe Medical Center in Reno said she sees children "mangled, crushed and deformed" because they were not buckled in. She said a $25 fine and a primary seat belt law is a "slap on the wrist" compared to the injuries suffered.
Doreen Begley, a nurse in the trauma section at the Reno hospital, said seat belts work.
"Any law that reduces the number of times I have to tell a family that a loved one has died, I'm in favor of it," Begley said.
The National Safety Council says 11 other states have laws where police can stop a driver for not wearing the seat belt. And in those states, the use of seat belts went up 15 percent.
But Chad Dornsife, representing the National Motorist Association, said the model law was in North Carolina which received a big federal grant. The state used the money to set up 7,500 road blocks and question 350,000 people. He questioned whether Nevada wanted to see roadblocks every other day.
Assemblyman Mark Amodei, R-Carson City, wondered if deaths and injuries decreased in these 11 states after the seat belt laws were enacted. The safety experts couldn't answer that but promised to provide the information.
Kathleen Kuretich, a kindergarten teacher, said police can't see if the motorist is wearing a lap belt and this will lead to "harassment." She said police should focus on preventing violent crimes, not on seat belt enforcement.
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