District Court Update

July 2008

Beginning July 1, 2008, children in Michigan who are both under eight years old and less than 57 inches tall will be required to ride in a vehicle in an approved child restraint seat. Public Act 43 of 2008. Current law requires children under age four to ride in a child restraint seat. The new law extends the requirement to include older children who are smaller and not protected by seat belts alone. The new law will allow an officer to stop a driver for this violation and a fine of up to $65.00 may be imposed.

Public Act 152, of 2007, being MCL 750.50, increased penalties in some circumstances for abuse of animals, effective 12/20/07. The new law basically structures the penalties, from a 93 day misdemeanor to a 4 year felony, based on the number of animals involved.

House Bills 5884 & 5885 have proposed a 5 year phase out plan for driver’s responsibility fees reducing the fees by 20% each year until 12/31/20012 when they would end. In addition, the proposed bills would exempt anyone over 62 years old from payment of the fees.

Senate Bill 1066 would approve a new procedure for use in certain civil infraction violations. It would allow courts to divert offenders to complete a basic driver improvement course. Upon certification of completion of an approved course and payment of the fines and costs in the matter, the matter would be dismissed and no points would be assessed against the driver.

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