TUCKER - On a recent bright afternoon, Officer Mester and Officer Fox met with children and their parents at the Children's Academy of Northlake on Harobi Drive. The purpose of the gathering was to stress the importance of being buckled up to the children, and to offer to check child safety seats to make sure they were being used properly. In Georgia, all children below three years of age must be in a car seat properly used, when traveling. Children three to four years must be in either a car seat or seat belts. And all children above that age must wear seat belts.

The officers report that often times they see the following types of misuse. Some are more serious than others. However, even less serious misuses, when seen in combination, may interact to have serious consequences.

• The seat is used up front with an air bag equipped vehicle
• Infant in a safety seat facing forward, rather than rear
• Child not secured by safety seat harness, simply sitting loose in a safety seat
• The car seat not being secured to the car (or too loose)
• A "locking clip" not being used in conjunction with the normal 3-point seat belts
• Using wrong harness slots (above shoulder rear-facing or below-shoulders forward facing)

To be effective, the car safety seats must be used correctly. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that when these seats are used correctly, they are:

• 71% effective in preventing fatalities
• 67% effective in reducing the need for hospitalization
• 50% effective in preventing minor injury.

The officers went to the location at the end of the day when the parents were arriving to pick their children up. Although many parents arriving were slightly alarmed to see two police cars outside, they were grateful for the time and concern the officers had for the children.

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