LUVERNE, MN (KELO) — While South Dakotans are allowed to drive at the age of 14, as of August 1, children in Minnesota aren’t allowed to sit in the front seat until they’re 13.
12-year-old Khloe Noah has been sitting in the front seat for a few years now.
“I think I was about like 10 when I started to sit in the front seat,” Khloe Noah said.
Something her mom thought was reasonable, considering Khloe is taller than her.
“When my daughter passed me in height, I figured she was tall enough to ride in the front seat,” Khloe’s mom, Azalea Noah said.
But as of Aug. 1, Khloe will have to move to the back of the car, because children in Minnesota need to be at least 13-years-old to sit in the front seat. However, law enforcement says there is an exception to the rule.
“So if all of the seats are occupied with other children within like either a child restraint or children who are not fit to be in the front, then a child may sit in the front if all the seats are taken in the back. But you make sure you shut that front airbag off if it’s possible,” chief deputy Nobles County Sheriff’s Office Melissa Einck said.
For South Dakotans traveling into Minnesota, if there is someone under 13 in the front seat, law enforcement says you should pull over so they can move to the backseat.
“So seatbelt offenses and child restraint offenses are primary offenses in Minnesota. So we can stop you solely for the seatbelt offense,” Einck said.
As for the Noahs, they think the law should be based on other factors.
“It definitely should have went off of more of a height and weight requirement, in my opinion, because that’s what the airbag goes off of as well,” Azalea said.
