Palo Alto, CA -- Police Chief Lynne Johnson today announced a renewed effort in Palo Alto to educate the public and enforce laws relating to Child Safety Seats. A child safety seat program has been designed to help motorists protect their young children in traffic collisions. Current studies show an alarming 99% misuse rate in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties. Infant, toddler and booster seats that are installed incorrectly or misused can be just as dangerous to a child as not having one at all.

Veteran Traffic Officer Jennifer Nigh is being assigned to coordinate the program. With three young children of her own still in child safety seats, Nigh is well suited for the job. After five years of enforcing traffic laws from her police motorcycle, Nigh has seen enough needless injury. For the past three years, she has been teaching a safety seat segment in the pre-natal course offered by the Palo Alto Medical Foundation and now she will be taking her show on the road. Nigh will be visiting local elementary and pre-schools each month to conduct car seat checkups. The public will be invited to attend quarterly installation days - the first one scheduled for late June. At a date yet to be announced, Nigh and a team of specially trained officers will be on hand to teach parents the right way to install safety seats.

If a parent happens to miss the school checkups and is too busy to attend the quarterly public installation days, individual appointments can be made. The car seat installation training is conducted at the Palo Alto police station, two days a week. The process takes about a half hour. For an appointment, call Traffic Secretary Lisa Green at 650-329-2687.

The Palo Alto Police website at http://www.papd.org/topics/child_safety_seat.html has links to additional safety seat resources.

This program is funded by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency.

For additional information, contact Officer Jennifer Nigh at 650-617-3100 x1353.

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