A California driver was successful in obtaining a distinctive license plate that, when reflected in a mirror, spells out a prohibited phrase.
According to the California Department of Motor Vehicles, personalized license plates must not “be offensive or slang in ANY language,” “interchange letters and numbers to look like other plates,” or “resemble an existing license plate.” According to Boing Boing, the driver of this truck violated the laws.
License plates can be personalized “with your own combination of letters, numbers, and other characters,” according to the state’s DMV.Personalized regular license plates can have between two and seven characters. Other personalized license [plates] can have a variety of characters depending on the type of plate chosen for personalization.
In addition to personalized license plates, California provides historical, military, and special interest plates.
Special interest plates appear to help fund a variety of state activities and programs, including those related to agriculture, the arts, coastal preservation, firefighters, pets, child health and safety, preservation, conservation, recreation, and others.
Congressional Medal of Honor, Gold Star Family, Legion of Valor, Pearl Harbor Survivor, Ex-Prisoner of War, and Purple Heart are among the military plates offered. Additionally, you can purchase “Veterans’ Organization plates for anyone who wishes to order one to represent their pride in the nation’s military.”
Furthermore, vintage license plates are available “for motor vehicles of historical interest” that were manufactured after 1922 and have reached the age of 24.
According to Time magazine, the first license plate of any kind was issued in 1901, after New York passed legislation requiring motor vehicle owners to register with the state.
According to the law, license plates must bear “the separate initials of the owner’s name placed upon the back thereof in a conspicuous place, the letters forming such initials to be at least three inches in height.”
The first license plate was granted to a man named George F. Chamberlain.
