Police departments' seatbelt stings net 3,500 citations

Local law enforcement agencies ticketed more than 3,500 drivers this year for not buckling up as part of an effort to improve traffic safety and save lives, but some motorists feel inconvenienced at least and harassed at worst.

During the 2005 Maryland Chiefs Challenge, participating police departments conducted seatbelt checkpoints on heavily traveled roads and distributed material about traffic safety from April 5 to June 5.

City police handed out 800 citations this year, up from 769 in the same period of 2004. County police issued 2,403, as opposed to 2,422 last year. The Queen Anne's County Sheriff's Office issued 382...