FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 15, 2014

Contact
Patricia Shao, dragonbridge Inc.
(240) 686-4555, pws@dragonbridge.com

Rob Smith, Fitzgerald Auto Malls
(301) 816-6030, robsmith@FitzMall.com

FITZGERALD AUTO MALLS PROTECTS 45,000 CHILDREN ON THE ROAD
Jack Fitzgeralds Child Safety Seat Program Installs the 45,000
th
Child Safety Seat Today

NORTH BETHESDA, MD May 15, 2014 Today marks a special milestone at Fitzgerald Auto Malls.
At todays monthly Child Seat Inspection, Fitzgerald Auto Malls will install and inspect their 45,000
th
child
safety seat. No other local volunteer program in the United States has ever achieved this many child safety seat
inspections within a single program.
Jack Fitzgerald, CEO and founder of Fitzgerald Auto Malls, started the Fitzgerald Child Car Seat Inspection
Program in 1999 after learning the dangers of improperly installed child safety seats. Since then, Fitzgerald Auto
Malls, in partnership with national and local government agencies, has been committed to injury prevention and
increasing the number of lives saved through properly installed child safety seats.
As a local business owner, I am proud to have the opportunity to work with the great government and state
organizations to promote public safety, said Jack Fitzgerald. For 15 years now, Montgomery County Police
and Fire & Rescue Services have been actively involved at our child safety seat events and I thank them for their
support.
The Fitzgerald Child Car Seat Inspection Program has been a wonderful example of public-private partnership
success. The local Montgomery County police and fire rescue volunteers have been integral in helping to
organize and staff the events.
Today we celebrate a unique public-private partnership that has helped 45,000 children travel safer and given at
least as many families greater peace of mind, said Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler. Congratulations to all
of our state and local law enforcement and fire and rescue professionals whove teamed with Jack Fitzgerald and
his staff, for their hard work and dedication to protecting the most vulnerable passengers in any vehicle.
From 1975 through 2008, NHTSA estimates that almost 9,000 children were saved in crashes because they were
restrained in car seats or seat belts. The misuse of car seats remains a big problem and motor vehicle crashes are
the leading cause of death among children ages 3 to 14. The latest numbers show that every day in the United
States, an average of 4 children younger than 14 were killed and 529 were injured in motor vehicle crashes. In
1999, the first year of the Fitzgerald Child Safety Seat Program, the misuse rate was 97%. The numbers have
dropped to 50% year to date.
Monthly events are held at the White Flint Rockville dealership on Nicholson Lane, on the third Thursday of
every month. Visit www.FitzMall.com for details or to make an appointment.

# # #

From left to right: Jack Fitzgerald, CEO and founder, Fitzgerald Auto Malls, Megan Mullally (45,000th Child
Seat Installation), Mike Subin, Director of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Commission, Maryland State
Attorney General Douglas Gansler, Rob Molloy, National Transportation Safety Board, Chief Charles Bailey,
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue


From left to right: Maryland State Attorney General Douglas Gansler, Dottie Fitzgerald, Jack Fitzgerald
RESOURCE LINKS
Fitzgerald Auto Malls - Maryland
Fitzgerald Auto Malls Baltimore
Fitzgerald Auto Malls Tampa, FL
Fitzgerald Auto Malls New Port Richey, FL