Failure to display license plates?

[AlmostLawStuden]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MA and FL

A buddy has been driving around his new car with custom-made European license plates (thats one on the front AND back). They are, however, the same numbers of his real MA plates. He's been doing it for a few weeks and still hasn't been pulled over for it yet...

My question is what is the penalty for this if (when?) he gets caught? In MA? How about FL where he goes to school?

Thanks

[mojo_stevo]

Originally Posted by AlmostLawStuden

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MA and FL

A buddy has been driving around his new car with custom-made European license plates (thats one on the front AND back). They are, however, the same numbers of his real MA plates. He's been doing it for a few weeks and still hasn't been pulled over for it yet...

My question is what is the penalty for this if (when?) he gets caught? In MA? How about FL where he goes to school?

Thanks

Probably just a citation, or a fix-it ticket. You gotta pay to play.

[The Occultist]

This is a question that might easily be answered with a fairly short phone call to the DMV or police departments local to the areas you are concerned about.

[AlmostLawStuden]

The people at the DMV or PD's are not lawyers...

[LeeHarveyBlotto]

Originally Posted by AlmostLawStuden

The people at the DMV or PD's are not lawyers...

Buy many (if not most) will know the law associated with their jobs as well as or better than most attornies.

[Some Random Guy]

Florida thinks its a third degree felony. 319.33 see sections 5 and 6

[url=http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=Ch0319/SEC33.HTM]Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine[/url]

[I_Got_Banned]

Originally Posted by Some Random Guy

Florida thinks its a third degree felony. 319.33 see sections 5 and 6

[url=http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=Ch0319/SEC33.HTM]Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes : Online Sunshine[/url]

No its not... Its a noncriminal traffic infraction. He's not making the plates and selling them.

316.605 Licensing of vehicles.--

(1) Every vehicle, at all times while driven, stopped, or parked upon any highways, roads, or streets of this state, shall be licensed in the name of the owner thereof in accordance with the laws of this state unless such vehicle is not required by the laws of this state to be licensed in this state and shall, except as otherwise provided in s. 320.0706 for front-end registration license plates on truck tractors and s. 320.086(5) which exempts display of license plates on described former military vehicles, display the license plate or both of the license plates assigned to it by the state, one on the rear and, if two, the other on the front of the vehicle, each to be securely fastened to the vehicle outside the main body of the vehicle not higher than 60 inches and not lower than 12 inches from the ground and no more than 24 inches to the left or right of the centerline of the vehicle, and in such manner as to prevent the plates from swinging, and all letters, numerals, printing, writing, and other identification marks upon the plates regarding the word "Florida," the registration decal, and the alphanumeric designation shall be clear and distinct and free from defacement, mutilation, grease, and other obscuring matter, so that they will be plainly visible and legible at all times 100 feet from the rear or front. Vehicle license plates shall be affixed and displayed in such a manner that the letters and numerals shall be read from left to right parallel to the ground. No vehicle license plate may be displayed in an inverted or reversed position or in such a manner that the letters and numbers and their proper sequence are not readily identifiable. Nothing shall be placed upon the face of a Florida plate except as permitted by law or by rule or regulation of a governmental agency. No license plates other than those furnished by the state shall be used. However, if the vehicle is not required to be licensed in this state, the license plates on such vehicle issued by another state, by a territory, possession, or district of the United States, or by a foreign country, substantially complying with the provisions hereof, shall be considered as complying with this chapter. A violation of this subsection is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a nonmoving violation as provided in chapter 318.

[racer72]

Originally Posted by I_Got_Banned

No its not... Its a noncriminal traffic infraction. He's not making the plates and selling them.

316.605 Licensing of vehicles.--

(1) Every vehicle, at all times while driven, stopped, or parked upon any highways, roads, or streets of this state, shall be licensed in the name of the owner thereof in accordance with the laws of this state unless such vehicle is not required by the laws of this state to be licensed in this state and shall, except as otherwise provided in s. 320.0706 for front-end registration license plates on truck tractors and s. 320.086(5) which exempts display of license plates on described former military vehicles, display the license plate or both of the license plates assigned to it by the state, one on the rear and, if two, the other on the front of the vehicle, each to be securely fastened to the vehicle outside the main body of the vehicle not higher than 60 inches and not lower than 12 inches from the ground and no more than 24 inches to the left or right of the centerline of the vehicle, and in such manner as to prevent the plates from swinging, and all letters, numerals, printing, writing, and other identification marks upon the plates regarding the word "Florida," the registration decal, and the alphanumeric designation shall be clear and distinct and free from defacement, mutilation, grease, and other obscuring matter, so that they will be plainly visible and legible at all times 100 feet from the rear or front. Vehicle license plates shall be affixed and displayed in such a manner that the letters and numerals shall be read from left to right parallel to the ground. No vehicle license plate may be displayed in an inverted or reversed position or in such a manner that the letters and numbers and their proper sequence are not readily identifiable. Nothing shall be placed upon the face of a Florida plate except as permitted by law or by rule or regulation of a governmental agency. No license plates other than those furnished by the state shall be used. However, if the vehicle is not required to be licensed in this state, the license plates on such vehicle issued by another state, by a territory, possession, or district of the United States, or by a foreign country, substantially complying with the provisions hereof, shall be considered as complying with this chapter. A violation of this subsection is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a nonmoving violation as provided in chapter 318.

I agree with SRG.

(5) It is unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation to knowingly possess, manufacture, sell or exchange, offer to sell or exchange, supply in blank, or give away any counterfeit manufacturer's or state-assigned identification number plates or serial plates or any decal used for the purpose of identification of any motor vehicle; or for any officer, agent, or employee of any person, firm, or corporation, or any person who shall authorize, direct, aid in exchange, or give away such counterfeit manufacturer's or state-assigned identification number plates or serial plates or any decal; or conspire to do any of the foregoing. However, nothing in this subsection shall be applicable to any approved replacement manufacturer's or state-assigned identification number plates or serial plates or any decal issued by the department or any state.

IGB, your quoted statute does not address phony license plates.

[Maestro64]

Originally Posted by I_Got_Banned

No its not... Its a noncriminal traffic infraction. He's not making the plates and selling them.

316.605 Licensing of vehicles.--

(1) Every vehicle, at all times while driven, stopped, or parked upon any highways, roads, or streets of this state, shall be licensed in the name of the owner thereof in accordance with the laws of this state unless such vehicle is not required by the laws of this state to be licensed in this state and shall, except as otherwise provided in s. 320.0706 for front-end registration license plates on truck tractors and s. 320.086(5) which exempts display of license plates on described former military vehicles, display the license plate or both of the license plates assigned to it by the state, one on the rear and, if two, the other on the front of the vehicle, each to be securely fastened to the vehicle outside the main body of the vehicle not higher than 60 inches and not lower than 12 inches from the ground and no more than 24 inches to the left or right of the centerline of the vehicle, and in such manner as to prevent the plates from swinging, and all letters, numerals, printing, writing, and other identification marks upon the plates regarding the word "Florida," the registration decal, and the alphanumeric designation shall be clear and distinct and free from defacement, mutilation, grease, and other obscuring matter, so that they will be plainly visible and legible at all times 100 feet from the rear or front. Vehicle license plates shall be affixed and displayed in such a manner that the letters and numerals shall be read from left to right parallel to the ground. No vehicle license plate may be displayed in an inverted or reversed position or in such a manner that the letters and numbers and their proper sequence are not readily identifiable. Nothing shall be placed upon the face of a Florida plate except as permitted by law or by rule or regulation of a governmental agency. No license plates other than those furnished by the state shall be used. However, if the vehicle is not required to be licensed in this state, the license plates on such vehicle issued by another state, by a territory, possession, or district of the United States, or by a foreign country, substantially complying with the provisions hereof, shall be considered as complying with this chapter. A violation of this subsection is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a nonmoving violation as provided in chapter 318.

I think it is that part of the bold text that gets you in trouble, it is not what the state assigned. They get kind of pissy about those kinds of things. They are not Phony or Counterfeit since if the op is correct they have the correct number and letters assign to his car as well as the proper registration on it. The issue the police will have is they can not identify the state that issue the plates.

As the op pointed out, DMV and police are not always familiar with how the laws are written. Many times they assume they know only to find out in court they were wrong.

I think we all agree he is a ticket waiting to happen, just a matter of time and the right place. Now could a good lawyer argue his way out of it for the ops friend, possibly.

The only reason I say this, I have seen people who have been moved from other countries, come here with their plates on and drive around with them legally. I am not sure under what conditions they do this, however I have seen it.

Lastly, for states that do not require a front plate, I have seen people put these Euro plates on their cars for the county for which it was made in, and they are personalize and do not have a problem with them.

[Some Random Guy]

Yes, it is both a failure to display the proper plates and possession of fictitous plates. The felony charge doesn't include a clause that lets you off if you are just being a dumba** instead of being a professional plate forging criminal.

So the ticket or charge the driver gets depends on the mood the policeman is in and how much of a smartaleck the driver is when he gets pulled over and his plates are checked in the computer. If the driver gets a smug grin on his face and says "but officer, these ARE my plates", then he should memorize the phone number of a friend likely to have bail money.

If he gets the felony thrown at him, the DA may drop the charge back down to a lesser offense as a plea bargain, but according to the statute, he is opening himself up to a world of trouble.

[Orcons]

I assume the car is registered in MA so his problem will probably be with MA (not sure that FL would get involved in whether the plates are legal in MA and that would be their main concern if the car is registered in the commonwealth.)

In MA you are looking at anywhere from a fine of up to $100 (depending on what civil code they hit you with) or possibly a criminal violation if they want to argue that the driver was trying to avoid identification.

The fact that the # is the same as the MA # is meaningless - they are not legal MA plates and in any case if they don't identify the car as MA registered whatever else is on them is useless for the purpose of identification.

[The Occultist]

Originally Posted by AlmostLawStuden

The people at the DMV or PD's are not lawyers...

An officer has to know if something is illegal before he can cite you for it.

[I_Got_Banned]

Originally Posted by racer72

IGB, your quoted statute does not address phony license plates.

It doesn't mention "phony" plates per se but it does define what constitutes a violation of using a plate that does not meet the minimum standards/requirements set by the statute.

I still feel that the statute quoted by SRG deals with actual plates that ARE used in Florida and the 3rd degree felony comes in if you're caught posessing, using, selling, manufacturing (... etc) those in an unauthorized manner.

[CdwJava]

Originally Posted by AlmostLawStuden

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MA and FL

A buddy has been driving around his new car with custom-made European license plates (thats one on the front AND back). They are, however, the same numbers of his real MA plates. He's been doing it for a few weeks and still hasn't been pulled over for it yet...

My question is what is the penalty for this if (when?) he gets caught? In MA? How about FL where he goes to school?

Thanks

Is the car legally registered otherwise? In other words, if you run the plates out of MA will it come back to a validly registered vehicle?

In any event, MA requires the issued plates to be displayed:

Chapter 90: Section 6. Display of number plates; temporary number plates

Section 6. Every motor vehicle or trailer registered under this chapter when operated in or on any way in this commonwealth shall have its register number displayed conspicuously thereon by the number plates furnished by the registrar in accordance with section two or five or by temporary number plates authorized by the registrar as hereinafter provided, one number plate to be attached at the front and one at the rear of said motor vehicle, and one number plate to be attached at the rear of said trailer, but if the registrar issues but one number plate it shall be attached to the rear of the vehicle so that it shall always be plainly visible. The said number plates shall be kept clean with the numbers legible and shall not be obscured in any manner by the installation of any device obscuring said numbers, and during the period when the vehicle or trailer is required to display lights the rear register number shall be illuminated so as to be plainly visible at a distance of sixty feet. No number plates other than such as are procured from the registrar or such as may be authorized by him for temporary use, except as provided in section three, shall be displayed on any motor vehicle or trailer so operated; provided, that a motor vehicle or trailer which by reason of its interstate operation is registered in this commonwealth and elsewhere may display the register number plates of this and any other state or country in which it is registered, if, while being operated on the ways of this commonwealth, the number plates furnished by the registrar, or temporary number plates authorized by him as hereinafter provided, are displayed as required hereby. If any number plate supplied by the registrar is lost or mutilated or if the register number thereon becomes illegible, the owner or person in control of the vehicle for which said number plate was furnished shall make application for a new number plate, and thereupon the registrar shall issue to such applicant a permit allowing him to place a temporary number plate bearing his register number on said vehicle until a number plate of the regular design is made and delivered to said applicant; provided, that all such temporary number plates and the register numbers thereon shall conform to the regular number plates and be displayed as nearly as may be as herein provided for said regular number plates. Any motor vehicle or trailer may, if duly registered, be operated, pushed, drawn or towed or remain upon any way between the hours of twelve o’clock noon on the date on which its registration expires and twelve o’clock noon on the following day, if the following day is the first day of the new registration period, and if such vehicle or trailer displays its register number for either registration period as otherwise required by this section.

So, fail to display them at your own risk.

- Carl

[patstew]

Originally Posted by AlmostLawStuden

The people at the DMV or PD's are not lawyers...

Thank God.