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St. Louis County helmet law: Who knew?

In December, St. Louis County enacted a law effective countywide that requires children 16 and under wear a helmet while riding a bicycle, a scooter, roller skates, roller blades or a skateboard.

But the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Monday that only two citations have been given out since the law went in effect. A reporter's survey of the St. Louis County communities of Kirkwood, Maplewood and Maryland Heights indicates that many police departments are unaware that the law applies to their communities.

A couple of departments questioned the practically of enforcing the ordinance. Here's one example:

"Is it practical to enforce if you come across three or four kids out riding bikes without helmets?" Maryland Heights Police Chief Tom O'Connor told the Post-Dispatch. "What the hell do you do, confiscate their bikes and then drive them all home to tell their parents? It ought to be the parents' responsibility in the first place."

The helmet law does not affect the city of St. Louis because the city is a separate entity from St. Louis County.

Labels: advocacy, bicycling, Missouri, safety

Roger 1 comments 6:37 PM

Comments:

Would it not be so much easier and beneficial in the long term to teach responsible bicycling and driving.

I'm not against helmets, but I am against laws that assume me and the kids are stupid.

How many more friends would you have today if we all just wore helmets when we were kids?

Uhhh...

How mnay kids learn a valuable lesson from an occasional cut, scrape, or broken bone? A good thump on the head while jumping your bike over curbs will teach you not to launch yourself so carelessly.

All my nieces wear helmets when they ride... Why? Cause they were told to.

A helmet keeps them safe. They can do whatever they want cause they got a helmet on and they are safe.

They don't know how or why it keeps them safe, but they were told they have to and they had it drilled into them that they have to wear it.. so they do.

And we wonder why new generations lack common sense...

TC

# posted by  Anonymous : 7:34 AM

 

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