WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — In 2020, Christy King's son Christopher was a new high school graduate, with big plans post-graduation. Roughly two weeks after he got his diploma, he was killed in a car crash.
"The driver was going 80 in a 30-mile-per-hour zone, and that's when the driver lost control and went off the road, hit the ditch, and that's when my son was thrown from the car to his death. The other three kids walked away, no injuries, nothing because they had their seat belts on," King said.
Through her grief, she started a foundation in his honor, which focused on sharing messages about seat belt safety with area schools.
Her advocacy work led her to a shocking discovery.
“So I found out that Virginia is the worst state in the country right now for seat belt usage at only 73%. The national average is 92%. We are literally the worst at wearing our seat belts. Half of our fatalities were unrestrained," King said, citing data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that ranked Virginia dead last in seat belt use percentage among states in the U.S.
Current Virginia law only requires adult passengers in the front seat to wear a seat belt. Not wearing a seat belt is treated as a secondary offense, meaning Virginians can only be ticketed for not wearing a seat belt if they're already facing a primary traffic infraction.
“Everyone that I've spoken to is shocked about it. A lot of the legislators don't know that. You know, 'Oh, hey, it's not the back seat.' It's not included, but it's so important," King said.
WATCH: Virginia mom pushes for changes to Virginia's seat belt law: 'It's so important'
Nearly five years later, a bill named after her son, also known as House Bill 2475, is making its way through the Virginia House of Delegates, requiring all passengers to wear a seat belt or face a $25 fine.
Friends, family, and advocates testified before its Transportation subcommittee Wednesday, urging them to support the bill and eventually make not wearing one a primary offense.
“Unrestrained occupants are a danger to everyone in the vehicle; they become a missile in a crash, and they can hit somebody who is restrained. That could be a child, that could be a baby, that could be a driver who needs control of the vehicle," said Kristin Pettaway, the Executive Director of DRIVE SMART Virginia.
Fred Hannah, a friend of Christopher King, was in the car during the crash that took King's life.
"It really is a life changer and a lifesaver," Hannah said. "Seat belts do save lives."
“I want to ask the chair to move this to primary so we don’t lose more lives. Every day, every day is almost one person lost in the state of Virginia because it isn’t a primary law," King's father, Scott, said.
King said she did understand why the bill would likely continue listing it as a secondary offense, saying she worked with the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus to understand why doing so could be seen as a problem.
“So, this won't add any more interactions with the police and minorities," King said.
The bill passed in the Transportation Committee on Thursday with 12 votes in favor from Democrats and 10 opposing votes from Republicans.
It was projected to be read to the full House Sunday before heading to the Senate, where King said she will likely testify again.
“If it can prevent one parent from having to lose their child, that's why I do it, because no one should ever have to go through that. No child should have to lose their parent [or] friend lose their friend because of that simple one-second choice that could have saved their life," King said.
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