Oklahoma one of 23 states with no motorcycle helmet law for adults

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Studies show helmets save the lives and reduce injuries to motorcyclists in crashes. <br/><br/>But Oklahoma is one of 23 states with no helmet law for riders age 18 and older. Officials

Saturday, November 27th 2004, 11:42 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Studies show helmets save the lives and reduce injuries to motorcyclists in crashes.

But Oklahoma is one of 23 states with no helmet law for riders age 18 and older. Officials say only about one-third of Oklahoma motorcyclists wear a helmet.

Neurological surgeon Stan Pelofsky says he can't conceive why there isn't a helmet law. Pelofsky says they're proven to save lives and reduce the cost of health care.

But Mike Revere with the group ABATE says the issue isn't safety, it's personal choice and adults have the right to choose whether to wear a helmet.

Pelofsky says he understands the riders' desire to be free, but says a helmet law would be good if it saves just one person.

Forty-three Oklahomans and nearly 36-hundred Americans were killed in motorcycle crashes in 2003, an increase of about eleven percent from 2002.