This letter to the editor is only my opinion and is not intended to disrespect the memory of Kyleigh D’Alessio in any way. As a parent, I feel I must speak my mind about Kyleigh’s law (regarding new drivers in New Jersey).
These days it does not matter if you live in the suburbs, the city or a rural community. Crime is everywhere. People with bad intentions toward our children freely roam the streets. Why give them another aid (a decal on a new driver’s vehicle) in identifying the vulnerable?
Police already have the authority to stop, detain, question and/or arrest. They are given the tools of reasonable suspicion and probable cause as well as excellent training to enforce these powers bestowed upon them. Any officer who cannot look into a vehicle and ascertain that it is a youthful driver with a potential violation should get a fitnessfor duty checkup.
“Statistics show in other countries that these stickers work” is a comment I heard recently on a TV news program. I do not know anything about statistics from other countries, but I know that I do not want my child to be a statistic.
What next? Do we start putting gray stickers on the vehicles of seniors after the next elderly driver goes down the highway in the wrong direction at night?
I suggest vigilance and strict enforcement of the existing laws. Let’s give our children some credit. They have plenty of pressures on them already.
Today’s young people are smarter than ever. They will get the message. Taking responsibility is a huge part of becoming an adult.
Everything comes from the home, and we as parents must also take responsibility for our children. Be firm. Let them know how important it is to be a safe driver and to follow the rules of the road.
Let’s help our police do their job by sending an informed and safe driver out from our respective homes and driveways rather than adding another layer of rules and red tape to our existing laws.
Allan Barr East Brunswick