County passes helmet law

Spokane County commissioners unanimously passed an ordinance Tuesday requiring helmets for bicycling and other wheel sports in unincorporated areas.

The law applies to children 3 through 15 years old, and carries no penalty.

Commissioner Mark Richard moved for an ordinance with penalties that would apply to adults as well as children, but he couldn’t get a second. Commissioners Todd Mielke and Al French said they didn’t want to pass an ordinance that wouldn’t be enforced.

The proposed ordinance would have authorized a civil penalty against children or parents who allow them to ride bikes, scooters, rollerblades or skateboards without helmets. But police can’t issue citations to children, who have to be referred to Juvenile Court, and parents can’t be cited without proof they knew their children weren’t using helmets.

French said he was frustrated by lack of enforcement of the Spokane bicycle ordinance, which he voted for in 2004 on the City Council. That ordinance applies to adults and children and has penalties.

“I don’t want to repeat that mistake here” regarding enforcement, French said.

He said the no-penalty ordinance will still allow sheriff’s deputies to stop children and talk to them about the need to wear a helmet.

Mielke called for an ordinance for children 4 through 15, but French persuaded him to extend his motion to 3-year-olds. French noted he has a 2 ½-year old grandson who soon will need a helmet.

Many young children need helmets because they ride in child carriers on their parents’ bicycles, French said.

Acknowledging that his daughter is 19, Mielke bowed to French’s more current experience with young children.

Richard said he supported the motion reluctantly because he thought it was “better than nothing.” Across the nation, Richard said, helmet laws have reduced injuries 15 percent without enforcement and 50 percent with enforcement.

Mielke said he was reluctant to adopt an all-ages law and penalties without being able to determine whether Spokane’s helmet ordinance reduced head injuries. French agreed and said he hoped the Spokane Regional Health District would gather more detailed statistics that would support “next steps.”

“I’d like to look at this (county ordinance) as a first step,” French said.

In Washington, the only other counties that have helmet laws are King and Pierce, although 31 cities have ordinances, according to the Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute.