A federal court ruled today that an atheist gentleman from Kentucky should be permitted to get a personalized license plate from the state with the phrase “IM GOD” on it. The man is committed to his cause — this only took three years of legal fighting.
Here is the legal opinion from a U.S. District Court in Frankfort, Kentucky.
The ACLU and ffrf.org fought on his behalf, and won.
From the Associated Press:
Court documents show Ben Hart, a self-identified atheist, set out to get the Kentucky plate in 2016. But Hart’s request was denied by the state transportation department on the basis it violated antidiscrimination guidelines. News outlets report similar plates had been approved before, including “TRYGOD” and “NOGOD.”
Kentucky’s American Civil Liberties Union and the Freedom From Religion Foundation got involved to help Hart challenge the decision. In an opinion Wednesday by a U.S. District Court in Frankfort, the judge ruled “vanity plates” are private speech protected by the First Amendment and that the state had violated Hart’s rights by denying him the plate.
US court rules Kentucky man can get ‘IM GOD’ license plate [apnews.com]
With Freedom From Religion Foundation and ACLU-KY Backing, Kentucky Man Wins Right To Have “IM GOD” License Plate [aclu-ky.org]
PHOTO: aclu-ky.org