Police to ticket kids for being good

Ken Johnston
Editor

Local Ontario Provincial Police will be handing out 340 extra tickets across the district this summer but not for what you think.
Instead of penalizing people they will be rewarding kids for wearing their bicycle helmets from Rainy River to Atikokan.
Retired OPP Sgt. Hugh Dennis is now the coordinator for the Rainy River Valley Safety Coalition (RRVSC) and was in Rainy River to present the local police officers with the tickets to give out to local kids. Police finding kids 16 and under wearing their bicycle helmets can issue them one of these special tickets that will entitle the kid to a free ice cream cone at Chester Fried Chicken in Rainy River.
“We have teamed up with Chester Fried Chicken in Rainy River, Dairy Queen in Fort Frances and Triple G Confectionary in Atikokan to do this in the name of safety,” said Dennis.
Police have 65 tickets for the Rainy River, Morson and Stratton area, 200 for Fort Frances and 75 in Atikokan. “This is positive reinforcement,” said Dennis, “And it helps eliminate the helmet on the handlebars syndrome.” Some kids put their helmets on at home and then when away from their parents put it on the handle bars. It is the law that kids in Ontario up to the age of 16 have to wear a helmet when riding bikes.
The first tickets handed out in RR last week went to Sandra Ottertails kids, Tara, Heather and Joel.