Should Kids Lose Their Bikes For Not Wearing Helmets?

It's one thing to require that children wear helmets while biking or skateboarding.  But how should the police enforce it?  There's a range of consequences for adults caught speeding or running a red light:  the police can issue fines, require offenders to attend safety classes – even, for repeat offenders, revoke their licenses.  Now police in the US have decided to give their helmet law some bite, alerting kids that their bikes and skateboards can be confiscated if they're caught riding without a helmet.

Under this plan, the police would return the impounded bikes and skateboards after 15 days, and officers say they would only exercise this option after kids ignored repeated warnings.  So little Suzie riding around her block on her new Barbie bike with training wheels won't be traumatised for life.  

But I think this is a good idea – and maybe, if temporarily impounding the bikes doesn't help, the police might want to consider taking them away for good.  Last month, in Holliston, an 8-year-old boy was hit by a car while riding a bike.  He was thrown 30 feet, but survived because he was wearing a helmet.  If we want our kids to understand how important helmets are, it makes sense to impose important consequences for not wearing them.