"The instructions that come with a child safety seat are not always easy to follow," said Zemotel, a department safety technician. "The problem a lot of people run into is the compatibility of their child safety seat and the car they are putting the seat into. Every backseat in a car has a different design and backseats are not designed for child safety seats."

     State law requires children to be secured to a safety seat until they are 5 years old or weigh more than 40 pounds.

     Zemotel said it's important for parents to ensure a child's safety seat is properly installed. "Most parents have good intentions, but they are not aware of the small techniques we use to get a seat installed the right way."

     He said a common mistake parents make is to not have the safety seat's harness adjusted to its proper tension. "Most child safety seats have a five-point harness," said Zemotel. "Many times the harness is not set at the correct tension. The chest clip for the harness is also not at the correct position and it's often strapped across where the child's stomach or lower rib cage. The correction location for the harness should be at the child's arm pit height."

     He also said infant seats should be positioned at an angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees. "A newborn child's head has a very heavy neck," said Zemotel. "The child's neck muscles have not fully developed. Some children have a problem holding their head up. You need to make sure the infant's seat is adjusted correctly so the child has an open airway."

     Police will host a free safety seat inspection at the Hanover Mall on Sunday from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. in the Rockland Federal Credit Union parking lot.

     Police Chief Paul R. Hayes said Zemotel is experienced with installing child safety seats. "We have probably installed close to 500 safety seats since he became a technician," said Hayes. "We don't know of many technicians that are out there."

     Zemotel's efforts passed a huge test when a car driven by Hanover resident Renae F. Tuffy was struck in the rear fender by a pickup truck driver on July 8, 2003. Tuffy's then 11-month-old son Liam did not suffer any injuries because he was strapped into a safety seat that Zemotel had previously installed a few years earlier. Tuffy and the pickup truck driver also escaped being hurt because both wore seatbelts.

     "It (safety seats) makes a difference," said Hayes.

     He said police recently trained mall officer Matthew Sweat to install safety seats to ease parents concerns and to protect children. "Everybody who comes through here says it's a nice thing to do," said Hayes. "It's all about child safety. "

     He also said Zemotel's demeanor is appreciated by parents who seek his assistance in having a safety seat installed properly. "He has small children himself," said Hayes. "He has a personality that fits this particular duty."

     Zemotel also installs safety seats and inspects them on an appointment basis at the police station, but this program could be discontinued because of diminished funding. Corporate gifts and state grants are used to subsidize the inspections, but these donations are declining. Police are accepting donations for the service through its Drug Resistance Education and Mentoring program (DREAM) .