Hennessey was given a “black eye” during last month’s Cruisin’ Oklahoma car show, said Harold Shaw, Hennessey Town Trustee.

A driver was given a ticket for no seat belts, he said, during the Thursday night board meeting. “And if you own a 1940 car then you’re not going to put seat belts in it.”

Shaw said he has had more complaints last month about those tickets than he has about the library they’ve talked about for a year.

ATV drivers were “pulled over by county although some of them had city permits,” Shaw said. “The county is hardly ever here anyway, and I don’t know why our police asked them to come.”

The reason for those stops was because of a new state law, said Town Administrator Tiffany Tillman, who added that the county only gets $5 for each ticket issued. “Under the new law,

“Under the new law, all ATV and UTVs that go over 45 mph may be enforced by county and Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers,” she said. “The city won’t stop you (if you have a town permit), but county and OHP will.”

Tillman said that a couple of people had been “stopped and warned by county about the new law,” but made no mention of them being cited.

Drivers must be 16

“You must also be 16 and older and have insurance on file with the police department,” Tillman said.

Registration of certain all-terrain and utility vehicles are required to have “a certificate of registration, license plate and yearly issued decals,” according to the new law.

“We need to get those stickers,” said Shaw.

“I’m working on that,” said Tillman, but she didn’t have an answer about why police asked for assistance from county and OHP. She said Police Chief Aaron Pitts was at a DARE class, and she’d talk with him later.

The item was put on the agenda “mostly as an educational” item, she said.

More parent, police action

“If you’re under 16, and driving, then your parents should know about it,” said Shaw. Then he suggested that police could get their “quota” if they sat at Seventh Street and Mitchell Road. He said he sees kids going fast down that 25 mph street all the way to SH 51.

Trustee David Jones said Second and Oak streets get busy in the evenings with ATVs and UTVs and could use some patrolling on those streets.

He said the music is loud, and Tillman said they weren’t talking about noise complaints.

Jones said they play the music on their vehicles.

Then Tillman said she understood, and said that ATVs/UTVs are only allowed on the streets one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset.

Jones said he wanted more time to review the new law, and any changes the board needed to make to their requirements.

Tillman said no action had to be taken that night, she just wanted the board, and the town, to be aware of the new law.

In addition to Shaw and Jones, other trustees at the meeting were Vice Mayor Clif Vogt and Richard Simunek. Absent was Mayor Bert Gritz.

Details of other actions taken at the meeting will appear in an upcoming issue.