§ 1258. Child restraint systems; individuals under 18 years of age
(a) No individual shall operate a motor vehicle, other than a type I school bus, in this
State upon a public highway unless every occupant under 18 years of age is properly
restrained in a federally approved child restraint system as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 571.213, as may be amended, or a federally approved safety belt, as follows:
(1) a child under two years of age shall be properly secured in a federally approved rear-facing
child restraint system with a harness, as those terms are defined in 49 C.F.R. § 571.213, as may be amended;
(2) a child under five years of age who is not properly secured in a federally approved
rear-facing child restraint system in accordance with subdivision (1) of this subsection
shall be properly secured in a forward-facing federally approved child restraint system
with a harness until the child reaches the weight or height limit of the child restraint
system as set by the manufacturer;
(3) a child under eight years of age who is not properly secured in a federally approved
child restraint system in accordance with subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection
shall be properly secured in a booster seat, as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 571.213, as may be amended;
(4) a child under 18 years of age who is not properly secured in a federally approved
child restraint system in accordance with subdivision (1), (2), or (3) of this subsection
shall be restrained in a safety belt system
(5) a child under 13 years of age shall always, if practical, ride in a rear seat of a
motor vehicle; and
(6) no child shall be secured in a rear-facing child restraint system in the front seat
of a motor vehicle that is equipped with an active passenger-side airbag unless the
airbag is deactivated.
(b) An individual shall not be adjudicated in violation of this section if:
(1) the motor vehicle is regularly used to transport passengers for hire, except a motor
vehicle owned or operated by a child care facility;
(2) the motor vehicle was manufactured without safety belts; or
(3) the individual has been ordered by an enforcement officer, a firefighter, or an authorized
civil authority to evacuate individuals from a stricken area.
(c) The civil penalty for violation of this section shall be as follows:
(1) $25.00 for a first violation;
(2) $50.00 for a second violation; and
(3) $100.00 for third and subsequent violations. (Added 1983, No. 96 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; amended 1987, No. 49; 1989, No. 167 (Adj. Sess.); 1993, No. 20, § 1; 1993, No. 119 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2003, No. 28, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2004; 2005, No. 174 (Adj. Sess.), § 54; 2005, No. 175 (Adj. Sess.), § 61; 2009, No. 150 (Adj. Sess.), § 6, eff. June 1, 2010; 2015, No. 47, § 28; 2023, No. 85 (Adj. Sess.), § 292, eff. July 1, 2024; 2023, No. 165 (Adj. Sess.), § 24, eff. July 1, 2024.)