Saving your child's life

Sunday, February 4, 2007

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The Jeffrey Klapatch Act went into effect Jan. 1 of this year. Klapatch had nine speeding tickets before an accident took his life. (slideshow)

It's the legacy of a Lakeland teenager who died tragically in 2005.

A web site with all the tools parents need to keep tabs on their children. And it has already proved to be in high demand across the state.

Jeffrey Klapatch's mother wrote on the site, "my big, beautiful, 6-foot-2, 200-pound son was killed in a violent motorcycle accident."

Klapatch's tragic end propelled his mother to action. On Jan. 1, 2007, the Jeffrey Klapatch Act went into effect in Florida.

"We have to give parents all the tools we can possibly give them to keep our children safe," Pinellas County Tax Collector Diane Nelson said.

Tracking Teen Driving

Monitor your child's driving record.
Florida Motor vehicles web site
Track accidents in your county
E-mail Carol Minn, the TV reporter on this story.

Parents can now check their children's driving records up to the age of 18. Klapatch's mother did not want another parent to make the same mistake. Her 18-year old son loved his motorcycle, and even more, he loved speed. He received nine speeding tickets before the fatal motorcycle accident.

"His parents did not know this," Nelson said. "Perhaps maybe if this web site had been developed at that time, they would have been able to monitor that a little bit better."

Once you're on the highway safety and motor vehicles web site, click on the parental access link. You'll be asked to enter your child's drivers license number. Then you'll have to verify the last four digits of your child's social security number and birth date.

Parents can check their child's driving record.

The web site allows parents to check their child's driving record.

Mothers of new driver's like Becky Rosco are excited about the new service.

"It's a way for them to stay safe," Rosco said. "It's a way for us to let them know we're keeping track of them as well. Hopefully that will keep them safe."

The state has already received more than 500 requests since Jan. 1.

If you're concerned about security measures, only parents who sign the minor's license application will be able to obtain the driving record.

In addition to Florida, Oklahoma recently drafted a bill to enact a similar law citing Florida's new law as a model.