By Mark Rosman
Staff Writer
ENGLISHTOWN – Police officers in Englishtown wrapped up the 2016 “Click It or Ticket” campaign on June 5 by issuing the last of 76 summonses for seat belt violations during a two-week period.
This year’s “Click It or Ticket” campaign began on May 23 and saw the officers of the Englishtown Police Department join law enforcement agencies nationwide to shine a spotlight on safety, Commanding Officer Lt. Peter S. Cooke Jr. said.
According to the Office of the Attorney General website, New Jersey’s seat belt law:
• Applies to all passenger vehicles including vans, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles, that are required to be equipped with seat belts.
• Applies to all passengers (including the rear seat), who are at least 8 years of age or at least 57 inches tall, and to each driver and front seat passenger of a passenger automobile, operated on a street or highway. All of these occupants are required to wear a properly adjusted and fastened seat belt system.
• Makes the driver responsible for proper seat belt use by all occupants who are under the age of 18.
Cooke said that from 6-10 p.m. May 23 — the night “Click It or Ticket” began, two officers were assigned to a “Border to Border” regional kickoff event. During the targeted enforcement time, officers stopped 26 vehicles, issued 15 summonses (six for seat belt violations) and arrested one person for possession of marijuana.
For the remainder of the campaign, the police department used high visibility seat belt checkpoints and saturation patrols to reiterate the life-saving value of seat belts, Cooke said.
On June 14, the lieutenant provided the final statistics for the department’s participation in the 2016 “Click It or Ticket” campaign: Englishtown’s officers issued 76 summonses for seat belt violations, 24 summonses for speeding, 12 summonses for illegal cell phone use, 13 summonses for driving with a suspended license, 10 summonses for violations of child restraint laws, two summonses for reckless driving, six summonses for careless driving, and 256 other violations.
Cooke said arrests made between May 23 and June 5 were for the following violations: two arrests were for possession of marijuana, one arrest was for possession of stolen property and 14 arrests were of individuals who had outstanding warrants.
During the 2015 “Click It or Ticket” campaign, Englishtown was one of 372 New Jersey police agencies that participated in the two-week initiative. The borough’s officers stopped 223 vehicles, issued 121 seat belt citations, arrested four individuals on outstanding warrants, arrested five people on drug charges (three for heroin possession), arrested two individuals who were driving under the influence of alcohol and issued an additional 203 tickets for other motor vehicle violations, according to Cooke.