Nixa city officials debating bicycle helmet law

A Springfield News-Leader article describes the debate among Nixa, MO, city leaders and citizens about a proposed law requiring helmets to be worn by children age 16 and under riding bicycle, skating, or riding a scooter:

When his son, Jordan, fell off his bike last year and fractured his skull, O'Byrne made all his kids wear bike helmets.

The house rule, however, slipped away when the helmets cracked.

Today, his boys don't use helmets when biking, though O'Byrne wishes they did.

Yet while Nixa officials ponder a law that would require all Nixa children to wear the protective gear, O'Byrne opposes it.

"I think it should be the responsibility of the parents and the kids," he said. "If they don't, it's my fault."

The Harrison, AR, Daily Times also has an article on the issue, as does the Belleville News-Democrat.