Interesting story...

featherhead · Aug 1, 2008

I heard this from my SIL...
They had gone to the beach, and seen someone from church there. Apparently the man has a hefty ticket to pay. He got pulled over, and he wasn't wearing a seatbelt. The officer saw the base for an infant seat in the back of the vehicle, so he doubled the fine, cause he could have been endangering the babies life (or something like that). WTG cops:thumbsup:

Judi · Aug 1, 2008

Very cool! I wish they would do this everywhere!

scatterbunny · Aug 1, 2008

That's interesting, but I can't get all excited that it's "great", when he didn't really endanger anyone but himself. There was no child in the car, just an infant seat base.

I don't see how, legally, he can get a higher ticket for endangering someone else that wasn't even in the vehicle. :shrug-shoulders: He definitely deserves a ticket for no seatbelt, and would have deserved a higher ticket or additional charge for endangering a child if the child were in the vehicle...but it doesn't seem fair or legal to me, as the story stands, and if I were that man, I'd be contesting the ticket (the higher price, at least, for child endangerment).

Judi · Aug 1, 2008

Yeah, I agree, but I still like it!

Jewels · Aug 1, 2008

featherhead said:
I heard this from my SIL...
They had gone to the beach, and seen someone from church there. Apparently the man has a hefty ticket to pay. He got pulled over, and he wasn't wearing a seatbelt. The officer saw the base for an infant seat in the back of the vehicle, so he doubled the fine, cause he could have been endangering the babies life (or something like that). WTG cops:thumbsup:

scatterbunny said:
That's interesting, but I can't get all excited that it's "great", when he didn't really endanger anyone but himself. There was no child in the car, just an infant seat base. I don't see how, legally, he can get a higher ticket for endangering someone else that wasn't even in the vehicle. :shrug-shoulders: He definitely deserves a ticket for no seatbelt, and would have deserved a higher ticket or additional charge for endangering a child if the child were in the vehicle...but it doesn't seem fair or legal to me, as the story stands, and if I were that man, I'd be contesting the ticket (the higher price, at least, for child endangerment).

Funny thing is (well not so funny but anyways) I was contacted by someone in this area about using US seats. I told him it was illegal to use them and he asked me by who!? I told him transport Canada has issued a public notice about it and can look it up on-line. He then tells me that he called the police department (not sure if in your city or my town) and they told him they couldn't see why he couldn't use a US seat in Canada

I got in contact with the MB carseat coalition who then was in contact with both departments. My guess is because of this he decided to check the base and it could possibly have been expired and that it wasn't "just because" :twocents:

scatterbunny · Aug 1, 2008

Jewels, that makes more sense...that part of the fine was for an expired (or foreign) infant seat base. I just couldn't figure out how the man being unbelted was endangering a nonexistent child, and just by virtue of having a base installed, he deserved a higher ticket.

Jewels · Aug 1, 2008

scatterbunny said:
Jewels, that makes more sense...that part of the fine was for an expired (or foreign) infant seat base. I just couldn't figure out how the man being unbelted was endangering a nonexistent child, and just by virtue of having a base installed, he deserved a higher ticket.

I only know this because of the call I received and the inquiring I made withthe coalition. I am just guessing it is a foreign or expired seat because I know where featherhead lives (it is actually just a couple of miles away from me) and the foreign and expired seat use I would say is quite high.

snowbird25ca · Aug 1, 2008

Jewels said:
I only know this because of the call I received and the inquiring I made withthe coalition. I am just guessing it is a foreign or expired seat because I know where featherhead lives (it is actually just a couple of miles away from me) and the foreign and expired seat use I would say is quite high.

Can you guys actually ticket if the seat isn't occupied though? Here if there's no child in the carseat it doesn't matter if it's 20yrs old and obviously buckled through the wrong beltpath, they can't ticket unless a child is using it. For all they know he buckled it in to take it somewhere... existence doesn't prove use...

My speculation would be that he got rude with the officer or something and it ended with him being ticketed for something else. I know provinces are responsible for setting their own traffic laws, but I just can't imagine him being ticketed for an expired or US carseat base holding up in court if it wasn't in use. Not that I don't like the idea, but I'm of the firm opinion that tickets should only be issued for those things that have grounds and would hold up in court. It wouldn't take much legal knowledge at all to have a ticket like that laughed out of the court room - and could result in the seatbelt ticket being dismissed too...

geth · Aug 1, 2008

did the guy know there was something wrong with the base?

featherhead · Aug 1, 2008

Ok, I think you are right Jewels. I remember this lady (they are from Germany) saying she got her seat (MC Mico) in America. I didn't totally remember the way the story went, but it had something to do with the infant seat base, so he got fined more. I thought it had been about endangering the infant or something, but more likely that it was a foreign seat. Thanks for the correction!

And snowbird, I don't see him being rude. I think he's a quiet, nice kinda guy.

Defrost · Aug 1, 2008

When I read it I thought the point was that if he wasn't wearing his seat belt at the time, he probably never wears it, in which case when he rides with the child he's endangering the child?

featherhead · Aug 1, 2008

That's what I had thought at first when my SIL told me, but after Jewels mentioned the foreign car seat base, I remembered they had a US seat.

snowbird25ca · Aug 1, 2008

featherhead said:
That's what I had thought at first when my SIL told me, but after Jewels mentioned the foreign car seat base, I remembered they had a US seat.

But honestly, can you guys ticket people for improperly installed, expired, or non CMVSS seats if a seat isn't occupied?

That's what is puzzling me... it might actually be the baby's seat, but with it not being in use, there is no *proof* of him using the US seat to transport a child. It's not illegal to possess or transport a US seat, it's just illegal to restrain a child in one. And most seats instruct parents to install the seat even when just transporting it to prevent it from being a projectile... so the grounds are just really lacking for that part of the ticket IMO.

YKWIM?

I know here they don't even stop you at the seat checks if there's no child in your car, but at a traffic stop they wouldn't be able to ticket either without a child present. Too much room for appeal...

4boysmom · Aug 2, 2008

Aren't they intercepting US seats coming in via mail. It sure seems it is "illegal" to posses and or transport a US seat"

.

snowbird25ca said:
But honestly, can you guys ticket people for improperly installed, expired, or non CMVSS seats if a seat isn't occupied?

That's what is puzzling me... it might actually be the baby's seat, but with it not being in use, there is no *proof* of him using the US seat to transport a child. It's not illegal to possess or transport a US seat, it's just illegal to restrain a child in one. And most seats instruct parents to install the seat even when just transporting it to prevent it from being a projectile... so the grounds are just really lacking for that part of the ticket IMO.

YKWIM?

I know here they don't even stop you at the seat checks if there's no child in your car, but at a traffic stop they wouldn't be able to ticket either without a child present. Too much room for appeal...

featherhead · Aug 2, 2008

That's kinda like if we try to take a baby walker across the border, they will take it away. They don't have any proof that you are going to use it for your baby, but they still take it away.

Interesting story...

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