American Press

Louisiana’s new car seat law that takes effect Aug. 1 is designed to save the lives of the state’s youngest — from infancy to age 14. Dr. Joseph Kanter of the state Department of Health said over the past three years 110 children and youth in Louisiana died in vehicle crashes.

Kanter is administrator and medical director for the department’s Region 1 that is based in New Orleans. He called the new law a step in the right direction.

“I can tell you, as an emergency room physician, I have grieved with families,” Kanter told The Advocate. “We always want to know if there was anything that could have been done that could have helped prevent this death.”

The newspaper said the current car seat law was passed in 1984 and was updated in 2009. It was based on a simple timeline tied to the child’s age and weight. The new law considers the height and weight limits of car seats and whether a child can fit into a vehicle seat properly. It is designed to keep children in the back seats of vehicles until they are teenagers. Here are its four main features:

Children younger than 2 must ride in rear-facing child safety seats.Children ages 2-4 must ride in a forward facing seat with an internal harness if they have outgrown a rear facing seat. Children ages 4-9 must ride in a booster seat secured with a lap/shoulder belt. Children ages 9-12 can ride without a booster seat if their knees bend over the front edge of the seat, their back is against the seat back and the seat belt crosses their chest and not their neck. Lt. Nick Manale, a State Police spokesman, said, “It (the new law) keeps children in the most protected categories for as long as possible.”

Dr. Kanter had some additional advice for parents and guardians of children. He said a law alone doesn’t save lives, but safety also requires a behavior change.

Those who care for children should take advantage of free car seat inspection and installation sites throughout the state. A list of those sites can be found at www.lahighwaysafety.org.

Appointments have to be made for child safety seat fitting stations in this area that are located at State Police Troop D, the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Lake Charles and Sulphur police and fire departments and the SEED Center across from McNeese State University.

We urge parents and guardians to take advantage of these stations to ensure that those they love are fully protected in vehicle crashes.

In this 2014 archive photo, Lt. Mike Williams of the CPSO helps Aubrey Kleinpeter in her booster seat.