Virginia mother who lost son in car crash encourages seat belt safety

ROANOKE, Va. – Many people are planning their holiday travel next week, but before you hit the road, remember to buckle up.

The majority of deaths over the Thanksgiving holiday resulted from people not wearing their seatbelt in the vehicle, according to Virginia State Police.

10 News spoke with Christy King whose son, Christopher, died in a car crash just two weeks after he graduated high school.

“We get that knock on the door that no parent should ever have to answer,” she said.

Christopher was not wearing his seat belt at the time of the crash.

“When the officer told us he was ejected from the car and not wearing his seat belt, we were astounded because he always wore his seat belt,” said Christy.

The number of people not wearing seat belts has increased in Virginia over the past couple of years. According to Youth Of Virginia Speak Out About Traffic Safety (YOVASO), 65% of teenagers killed in car crashes last year were not wearing their seatbelts.

“The general population is not buckling up as often as they used to. Virginia seat belt use rate is lower than it has been in a number of years,” said YOVASO Program Manager, Mary King.

Since her son’s death, Christy has started spreading awareness about the importance of buckling up and formed the Christopher King Foundation.

“When I’m talking to kids and adults and they start tearing up, I’m like, ‘Good, you understand. You are going to remember Christopher’s story and you are going to tell your kids, tell people that you love, because it can happen to you,’” said Christy.

Christy is also fighting to change the law.

She’s fighting to make not wearing a seat belt a primary violation as opposed to Virginia having it as a secondary, meaning law enforcement cannot pull over people for not wearing their seat belts.