Child seat inspections this week on Navajo

By John Christian Hopkins
Diné Bureau

FORT DEFIANCE — The Safe Kids Coalition is providing free car seat inspections this week around the reservation.
“We do this regularly, especially in the summer,” said Larry Benallie Jr., project and program specialist for the Navajo Highway Safety Department. The Safe Kids coalition is a partnership that also includes Indian Health Services.

The Navajo Nation is the first Indian tribe — and among the first governments — to make child safety seat use a primary law, Benallie said. In the Arizona, for example, a police officer can not stop you because you don’t have a safety seat, but can give a ticket if you were pulled over for some other reason, Benallie explained.

But on Navajo, a driver can be cited for not using a child safety seat, he added.

In addition to inspecting car seats, they also provide free seats for low income families, Benallie said.

“It’s been a good turnout today,” Benallie said. “We started with 24 seats and we gave away 23 so far.”

They check to make sure safety seats are working properly, and are not on a federal government recall list, Benallie said.

“Some people will go Dumpster diving to find a car seat,” Benallie said. “We don’t get many (on the recall list), but we get a few. We have to disable them.”

Children should ride in a safety seat until they are about 5-feet tall and weight 100 pounds, Benallie said. After that, they can use adult seat belts, he added.

“Car crashes are the leading cause of fatalities for Navajo children,” Benallie said.

Though car seats are mandatory, the Nation has not yet included booster seats, Benallie said.

“There’s legislation to change that working its way through council,” Benallie said.

Safety seat inspections were at the Fort Defiance Hospital on Tuesday, and will be at the Kinlichee Chapter House Wednesday, Rock Springs Chapter House on Thursday and at the St. Michael’s Chapter House on Friday.
Next week they plan to do the same in Torreon and Tohajiilee.

“Of course, that’s all weather permitting,” Benallie said.

John Christian Hopkins can be reached at Hopkins1960@hotmail.com