Reservation makes seat belts a primary offense

St. Paul, Minn. — Minnesota does not have a primary seat belt law, but one part of the state now does. The White Earth Indian Reservation has approved a law allowing police to pull over unbelted motorists.

The law applies to reservation residents only. State Public Safety Commissioner, Michael Campion, is praising the action.

"Primarily of course is to increase the compliance rate and save lives and people who experience life-altering actions on the reservation. We applaud their leadership and their vision and their understanding of the issue. It's wonderful to see," Campion said.

Attempts to pass a primary seat belt law in the Minnesota legislature have repeatedly failed. Current state law allows police to issue seat belt citations only after pulling over a motorist for another moving violation.