Girl Paralyzed As 3-Year-Old By Drunk Driver Makes Recovery

MINNESOTA — In November 2015, 3-year-old Havana Bodell was paralyzed with a broken neck, on a ventilator to breathe and wearing a halo to keep her head and neck from moving after a drunk driver hit the family’s vehicle in Minnesota's Isanti County.

She is now walking; a remarkable recovery that authorities say was made possible by her mother Erica’s decision to properly secure her daughter in a child safety seat before driving.

"A simple car seat helped stop a drunk driver from forever taking my Havana away from me," said Erica Bodell.

"Doctors were concerned she may never walk again. It’s been a very tough recovery, but that car seat gave Havana a chance to be a little girl again. That crash could’ve killed her, her two brothers and me, but I’m convinced that the car seat and seat belts are why we’re alive today."

To help ensure Minnesotans like Havana have the best chance of surviving a crash, more than 300 law enforcement agencies will be participating in the statewide Click It or Ticket extra enforcement campaign Sept. 16 – 28. The campaign reminds people that expecting the unexpected — the drunk driver, the distracted driver, the deer suddenly appearing on the road — will help them stay alive if they buckle up and protect their children with the correct safety seat

Minnesotans gamble with their lives and the lives of their children by making the wrong choice.

• During the last five years, 18 children (ages 0 - 7) were killed in motor vehicles and only seven of the victims were known to be properly secured (six were not properly restrained, and restraint use was unknown in five fatalities).
• 71 percent of the unbelted deaths occurred in Greater Minnesota (outside the seven-county metro area).

Minnesota Child Car Seat Law and Steps

In Minnesota, all children must be in a child restraint until they are 4 feet 9 inches tall, or at least age 8, whichever comes first.

• Rear-facing seats - All infants and toddlers should ride in a rear-facing car seat until they have reached the height and weight limits allowed by the car seat manufacturer.
• Forward-facing seats with harness - Toddlers and preschoolers who have reached the height and weight limits of the rear-facing car seat should use a forward-facing seat with harness until they reach the weight limit of the harness allowed by the car seat manufacturer.
• Booster seats - For school-age children who have reached the height and weight limits of the forward-facing seat. The booster must be used with a lap and shoulder belt.
• Seat belts - For children 8 years old or have reached 4 feet 9 inches. Your child is ready for an adult seat belt when they can sit with their back against the vehicle seat, knees bent comfortably and completely over the vehicle seat edge without slouching, and feet touching the floor.

Speak Up about Buckling Up

The 2019 Minnesota Seat Belt Survey shows 93.4 percent compliance for front-seat occupants, a slight increase over 2018 (92.4 percent). Drivers can help close the gap by refusing to start the car until every passenger is belted. Passengers can speak up and challenge others in the car to be safe. If the driver is unbuckled, refuse to ride in the car until they strap on their seat belt.

Sometimes the excuse may be — “It’s not like drunk driving, because I’m only hurting myself if I don’t wear a seat belt.” That excuse doesn’t work. An unbelted motorist can get thrown into other passengers, injuring or killing them. Loved ones left behind after an unbelted fatality will hurt from the pain and emptiness of an easily preventable death.