DOMINGUE v. FORD MOTOR COMPANY

314 Ga. 59

FINAL COPY S22Q0279. DOMINGUE et al. v. FORD MOTOR COMPANY. WARREN, Justice. In 1988, the Georgia General Assembly enacted OCGA § 40-8- 76.1, commonly known as Georgia’s “seatbelt statute,” which requires “[e]ach occupant of the front seat of a passenger vehicle” to “be restrained by a seat safety belt” “while such passenger vehicle is being operated on a public road, street, or highway of this state,” OCGA § 40-8-76.1 (b), subject to exceptions laid out in OCGA § 40- 8-76.1 (c). Among other things, OCGA § 40-8-76.1 restricts the use of evidence of a vehicle occupant’s failure to…