Preventable Heartbreak: Motor Vehicle Accidents Top Child Deaths in Kern County

Motor vehicle accidents remain a significant concern for child safety in Kern County, based on the latest Kern County Public Health’s Child Death Review Team report.

Of the 64 preventable child deaths highlighted in the report, 25 of them were accidental deaths. Of those, motor vehicle accidents accounted for 10 of the 25 accidental deaths in Kern County in 2023, or 40%. This was a 63% increase from 2022, the report states. As for the other deaths, four were suicides, seven were homicides, 14 were natural, and 14 were undetermined. Four were due to acute fentanyl toxicity.

Among the child deaths, 13 were under ages 1-4; five were ages 5 to 9; six were ages 10-14; and 19 were ages 15-17.

About 41% of households in Kern County had children in 2023. In all, there were nearly 250,000 children ages 17 and younger in Kern County. In 2023, a total of 136 children died in Kern County.

“Even one child death due to a motor vehicle accident is one too many,” said Matt Clark, managing partner and attorney at the Law Office of Chain | Cohn | Clark. “As a community, we must redouble our efforts to prevent these tragedies through education, proper use of child safety restraints, and vigilant driving. Every child’s life is precious, and we have a collective responsibility to ensure their safety on our roads.”

The Kern County Child Death Review Team was established in 1988 to help identify and review suspicious deaths of children, and to help various agencies communicate between each other regarding child deaths. It is composed of representatives from the following industries: forensic pathology, pediatricians, coroners, criminologists, district attorneys, child protective services, law enforcement, and others. They review deaths that were accidental, homicides, child abuse, suicides, and unusual circumstances.

Several factors contribute to the risk of motor vehicle accident fatalities among children, particularly when it comes to child restraints:

• Incorrect Use of Child Restraints: Child safety seats and booster seats are frequently used incorrectly, reducing their effectiveness.
• Driver Intoxication: When the driver is intoxicated, children are more likely to be found unbuckled.
• Improper Restraint Use: Children aged 4-7 years have a higher incidence of being found unbuckled.
• Parental Influence: A child’s use of restraints often depends on whether the driver is using a seat belt.

To reduce child fatalities from motor vehicle accidents, the following measures are crucial:

• Education: Increase awareness about proper child restraint use and the importance of seatbelts for all passengers.
• Enforcement: Strengthen and enforce laws regarding child passenger safety and impaired driving.
• Community Programs: Implement car seat inspection events and distribution programs for low-income families.
• School-Based Initiatives: Incorporate traffic safety education into school curricula.

Motor vehicle accidents remain a preventable cause of child deaths in Kern County. By focusing on education, enforcement, and community engagement, we can work towards reducing these tragic incidents and protecting our youngest residents.

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Please review these tips, courtesy of the Safe Kids Worldwide, to make sure you’re protecting your little loved ones.

• Choose the Right Direction: For the best protection, keep your baby in a rear-facing car seat until at least 2 years old. The exact height and weight limits of your car seat are typically on the side or back labels. Kids who ride in rear-facing seats have the best protection for the head, neck and spine. It is especially important for rear-facing children to ride in a back seat away from the airbag. When your children outgrow a rear-facing seat around age 2, move them to a forward-facing car seat. Some forward-facing car seats have harnesses for larger children. Check labels to find the exact height and weight limits for your seat.
• Check the Label: Look at the label on your car seat to make sure it’s appropriate for your child’s age, weight and height and development. Your car seat has an expiration date – usually around six years. Double check to make sure it’s still safe. Discard a seat that is expired in a dark trash bag so that it cannot be pulled from the trash and reused.
• Know Your Car Seat’s History: Buy a used car seat only if you know its full crash history. Once a car seat has been in a crash or is expired or broken, it needs to be replaced.
• Make Sure Your Car Seat is Installed Correctly:
  • Inch Test: Once your car seat is installed, give it a good tug at the base where the seat belt goes through it. Can you move it more than an inch side to side or front to back? A properly installed seat will not move more than an inch.
  • Pinch Test: Make sure the harness is tightly buckled and coming from the correct slots. With the chest clip placed at armpit level, pinch the strap at your child’s shoulder. If you are unable to pinch any excess webbing, you’re good to go.
  • For both rear- and forward-facing child safety seats, use either the car seat belt or the lower attachments and for forward-facing seats, remember to add the top tether to lock the car seat in place. If you are having even the slightest trouble, questions or concerns, certified child passenger safety technicians are able to help or even double-check your work. Find a technician or car seat checkup event near you at safekids.org or nhtsa.gov.
• Check Your Car Seat: Seventy-three percent of car seats are not used or installed correctly, so before you hit the road, check your car seat. It takes only 15 minutes.
• Is it Time for a Booster Seat?: Take the next step to a booster seat when you answer “yes” to any of these questions: Does your child exceed the car seat’s height or weight limits? Are your child’s shoulders above the car seat’s top harness slots? Are the tops of your child’s ears above the top of the car seat? If the car seat with a harness still fits and your child is within the weight and height limits, continue to use it until it is outgrown.
• Be Wary of Toys: Toys can injure your child in a crash, so be extra careful to choose ones that are soft and will not hurt your child. A small, loose toy can be dangerous and injure your baby in a crash. Secure loose objects and toys to protect everyone in the car.
• Buckle Up: We know that when adults wear seat belts, kids wear seat belts. So set a good example and buckle up for every ride. Be sure everyone in the vehicle buckles up, too. Buckling up the right way on every ride is the single most important thing a family can do to stay safe in the car.

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If you or someone you know is injured in an accident at the fault of someone else, or injured on the job no matter whose fault it is, contact the attorneys at Chain | Cohn | Clark by calling (661) 323-4000, or fill out a free consultation form, text, or chat with us at chainlaw.com.