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Man fined for buckling in beer, not toddler

Sun, 2008-05-18 15:31 - Kerry
Police 'shocked and appalled' after Australian leaves 5-year-old on car floor
The Associated Press
updated 8:58 a.m. ET, Tues., May. 13, 2008

DARWIN, Australia - An Australian man has been fined after buckling in a case of beer with a seat belt but leaving a 5-year-old child to sit on the car’s floor, police said Tuesday.

Constable Wayne Burnett said he was “shocked and appalled” when he pulled over the unregistered car Friday in the central Australian town of Alice Springs.

The 30-can beer case was strapped in between two adults sitting in the back seat of the car. The child was also in back, but on the car’s floor.

“The child was sitting in the lump in the center, unrestrained,” Burnett told reporters Tuesday.

“I haven’t ever seen something like this before,” he said. “This is the first time that the beer has taken priority over a child.”

The driver was fined 750 Australian dollars — about $710 — for driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle and for failing to ensure a child was wearing a safety belt. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24594248&GT1=43001

 

Comments

Sun, 2008-05-18 15:43 — Kerry

Placement and safety issues? PAHLEEEEESE!

I had to laugh at this article because I seriously cannot COUNT how many times I sat on or in strange places in a moving vehicle.

For myself, there were foot-holes of a back seat,  traveling from Arizona to California.  (That was no short trip to the store...) There was the engine in my dad's van that served as my seat. (Hey, at least it was heated...) There were LOTS of station-wagon roll-overs that took place between the back seat and the way-back cargo space. (Nothing like a human projectile in a moving car....)

In fact, I can't remember having to use a seatbelt until I became an adult! 

Would you believe my aparents thought I was "TOO much" when I got furious when I saw one of my kids sitting on my mother's lap, as they took a country-ride in my dad's truck?

At least in the Australian case, the beer was secured so no loose bottles would hit the child in the head.  Safety counts SOMEWHERE, doesn't it?