A Commerce City police officer pulled over a driver on Highway 2 after spotting two small children riding loose in the backseat, then refused to let the car move an inch until proper child seats arrived. The driver ultimately walked away with citations for child abuse, speeding, reckless driving and failing to properly restrain child passengers.
The Commerce City Police Department posted video of the traffic stop on Facebook that shows Officer Castellanos pulling the vehicle over and telling the driver she could not continue without appropriate child restraints, according to the Commerce City Police Department. The department framed the clip as a blunt safety reminder for Highway 2 and warned that officers will not allow drivers to continue with unrestrained kids in the car.
Traffic Stop Caught On Camera
“Don’t. Do. It,” the officer says in the clip as she orders the driver to pull over. The video shows two children in the backseat without car seats, according to the post from the Commerce City Police Department. Police say the driver had been traveling well above the posted speed limit, estimating speeds as much as 50 miles per hour over the limit before the vehicle slowed down.
With the children sitting unrestrained, officers told the driver the car was not going anywhere until proper seats showed up. Another adult was called to the scene with car seats, which officers accepted before issuing citations, the department notes in its report.
Why Car Seats Are Non-Negotiable
Safety experts have been sounding this alarm for years. Proper child restraints sharply cut the risk of a child being killed or seriously hurt in a crash. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that hundreds of children are killed or seriously injured in vehicle crashes each year and that many of those who die are unrestrained…