wardog
02-25-2005, 01:16 PM
University of Buffalo – Results of a new study show that unbelted officers are 2.6 times more likely to die if their patrol car crashes than officers who use a seat belt.
"More police officers died from traffic accidents in 2003 than from gun-shot wounds," said Dietrich Jehle, MD, associate professor of emergency medicine at the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and lead author on the study, which was published in the Journal of Trauma.
"The fact that traffic-related crash fatalities now are greater than the number of officers killed by felons suggests this issue needs to be revisited on a national scale," he said.
The researchers found that rushing to a crime scene was not the major reason for not buckling up, as might be expected. The findings showed that 60% of fatal crashes occurred when police were responding to non-emergency calls. Seat belt use was slightly lower for these calls.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION you can find the article in the law enforcement section of CALIBRE PRESS.
"More police officers died from traffic accidents in 2003 than from gun-shot wounds," said Dietrich Jehle, MD, associate professor of emergency medicine at the University at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and lead author on the study, which was published in the Journal of Trauma.
"The fact that traffic-related crash fatalities now are greater than the number of officers killed by felons suggests this issue needs to be revisited on a national scale," he said.
The researchers found that rushing to a crime scene was not the major reason for not buckling up, as might be expected. The findings showed that 60% of fatal crashes occurred when police were responding to non-emergency calls. Seat belt use was slightly lower for these calls.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION you can find the article in the law enforcement section of CALIBRE PRESS.