Page 8 - Flathead Beacon // 3.23.16

CITY BEAT 14 COUNTY BEAT 14 COURT BEAT 15 Newsworthy
Tra c Fatalities Double During First Months of 2016
More than 30 people have been killed on Montana’s roadways this year, including three in Flathead County
BY JUSTIN FRANZ OF THE BEACON
The number of fatalities on Mon- tana’s roadways has more than doubled in the rst three months of 2016 com- pared to last year, according to the Mon- tana Department of Transportation.
According to MDT statistics, as of March 21, 36 people had been killed in car accidents since Jan. 1, compared to 13 during the same period in 2015. MDT o - cials have called the sudden spike in road deaths a “crisis” and last week state and local leaders gathered in Helena to discuss the problem.
“Tra c fatalities don’t have to hap- pen,” said MDT Director Mike Tooley. “It’s almost accepted as a natural cause of death but it’s not a natural cause of death, it is preventable.”
Tooley said two factors are respon- sible for the increase in highway fatali- ties this year: good weather and low gas prices. Savings at the pump has put more drivers on the highways and, while snowy and icy roads are among the most danger- ous, people are a lot more cautious when driving on them. A mild winter has meant drivers are less cautious about road con- ditions and driving faster.
In Flathead County, three people have been killed in tra c accidents so far in
Tra c on U.S. Highway 2 at the intersection of Reserve Drive. BEACON FILE PHOTO
Montana. Tooley said MDT is looking at ways to spread the message of safe driv- ing across the state, especially to young people.
Tooley said not wearing a seatbelt is one of the leading contributors to death in an auto accident. In 2015, 224 peo- ple were killed in automobile accidents and 68 percent of them were not wear- ing seatbelts. According to Sheri Chuck Curry, two of the road fatalities in Flat- head County this year were the result of the victim not wearing their seatbelt.
“Wearing a seatbelt won’t always pre- vent death, but it increases your chances of surviving by a lot,” Curry said.
Vision Zero and the spike in highway deaths was the topic of the meeting in Helena on March 15. O cials from Gov. Steve Bullock’s o ce, the Attorney Gen- eral’s o ce, O ce of Indian A airs, Mon- tana Highway Patrol, Montana League of Cities and Towns, the Montana Asso- ciation of Counties, Federal Highway Administration and the Montana Tavern Association attended the meeting.
“We’re working hard at the state and local level to reverse this trend but frankly the only ones who can reduce this trend are the ones behind the wheel,” Tooley said.
jfranz@ atheadbeacon.com
2016, compared to one this time last year. The most recent death occurred on March 17, when 22-year-old Anna Sorensen of Columbia Falls was killed in a wreck on Highway 206. Montana Highway Patrol troopers said she had started to go o the side of the road when she overcorrected and went into oncoming tra c. A pickup truck struck the passenger side of the vehicle. Sorensen, who was wearing her
seatbelt at the time of the crash, was pro- nounced dead at Kalispell Regional Medi- cal Center. Two people in the pickup truck sustained minor injuries.
Montana frequently ranks high among states in road deaths per capita. Because of that, MDT has been pushing a program called Vision Zero. The goal of the pro- gram is to educate drivers and enforce the laws in an e ort to reduce road deaths in
White sh Council to Vote on Non-Discrimination Ordinance New law would bar discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity
BY TRISTAN SCOTT OF THE BEACON
A new law aimed at shielding people
from discrimination based on their sexual orientation and gender identity was slated to go before the White sh City Council on March 21.
If adopted, the non-discrimination ordinance would extend unmet civil rights and protections by “prohibiting discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.”
Councilor Frank Sweeney asked for the non-discrimination ordinance to be placed on the council’s agenda, but the city has spent the past year researching the ner points of such an ordinance.
The council’s March 21 agenda includee time set aside for a public hearing. The meeting took place after the Beacon went
to print.
In November 2014, some community
members asked the council to take a stand against bigotry, hatred and preju- dice in White sh by enacting a “no-hate ordinance.” Citing concerns about First Amendment rights violations, the council stopped short of introducing such an ordi- nance, and instead enacted a good-faith resolution a rming its commitment to diversity and inclusion, with the promise that it would take a hard look at a non-dis- crimination ordinance.
According to a working draft of the proposed ordinance, the city of White sh is committed to recognizing the “dignity of all its inhabitants and visitors, to cele- brate all diversity, and to protect and safe- guard the right and opportunity of all per- sons to exercise their civil rights and to be free from discrimination.”
The draft states that the city nds dis- crimination in the areas of employment, public accommodations and housing to be a serious threat to the health, safety, and general welfare of the community. It also notes that discrimination in areas of pub- lic accommodation is economically harm- ful to a prosperous community and is detrimental to the welfare and economic growth of the city.
Under the draft ordinance, people claiming discrimination may bring a civil claim to municipal court, but rst must establish that the Montana Human Rights Bureau will not pursue the case. If the bureau does not, the person has 90 days to le in municipal court. People alleging discrimination can seek mon- etary damages up to the jurisdictional limit of $12,000, injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees. There are no criminal
remedies or penalties.
The draft speci cally notes that the
ordinance is not intended to abridge oth- ers’ rights, including protections of free- dom of speech, freedom of association, and exercise of religion.
If adopted, White sh would not be the rst Montana community to enact a non-discrimination ordinance.
Missoula adopted a non-discrimina- tion law in 2010, while Helena and Butte followed in 2012 and 2014, respectively.
Bozeman adopted a non-discrim- ination ordinance in June 2014, and while ve residents challenged the city in court, a judge dismissed the suit in favor of the city.
Both Dillon and Billings rejected such non-discrimination ordinances in 2014.
tscott@ atheadbeacon.com
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MARCH 23, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM