WASHINGTON -- After the deaths of 11 children this summer, the government said Tuesday it is creating a panel of experts to study whether there are ways to prevent kids from getting stuck in automobile trunks.
The National Highway Safety Administration said it expects the panel to develop recommendations by mid-1999 to reduce the number of entrapment deaths and injuries.Among other things, the group is expected to study a range of possible solutions that include interior trunk latches, warning labels and educational programs to teach children about the dangers of getting trapped in a trunk.
"If there is a way to prevent the death of even one child, it will make the work of this panel worthwhile," said Dr. Ricardo Martinez, head of NHTSA.
When the NHTSA last studied the issue in 1984, it concluded trunk releases were impractical because there was only a remote possibility they would be used.
Some law enforcement officers have suggested that in the cases where criminals put victims in a trunk, the criminals might act more violently if they knew the victims could release themselves.
Other opponents of releases said their presence could send the wrong message to children, implying that it was safe to play in the trunk.
But advocates say the latter concern is misplaced.
"That's like let's not tell kids the stoves are hot," Janette Fennell, head of the San Francisco-based Trunk Releases Urgently Needed Coalition, said after the deaths this summer.
Eleven children -- all under the age of 6 -- died in one month after becoming trapped inside car trunks.
Auto industry experts say the added cost of release switches should not be an issue for automakers, since there have been estimates for the switches ranging from 20 cents to $5 per switch.
The new panel will be formed and headed by Dr. Heather Paul, executive director of the National Safe Kids Campaign. The remainder of the panel, which will be named at a future date, will include safety advocates and child behavioral experts, along with representatives of the medical, law enforcement and automotive industry communities.