Court applies brakes to Florida's 'Choose Life' plates
The Associated Press
02.10.00
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Editor's note: On Nov. 21, 2001, a state judge threw out the lawsuit challenging Florida's "Choose Life" plates, saying the plaintiffs failed to prove the plate was unconstitutional. The plaintiffs, which included the National Organization for Women and a Palm Beach County synagogue, said they would appeal the decision.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A judge blocked distribution of Florida's new "Choose Life" license plates while she decides whether they amount to a political statement against abortion.
Circuit Judge Lucy Chernow Brown issued the ruling Feb. 7 after the National Organization for Women sued.
NOW argued that the state improperly approved a "religious motto, which has frequently been used to harass, intimidate and at times kill and maim those who seek to exercise their rights, including the right to choose abortion."
The state Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles had planned to begin selling the plates in March for an extra $22. The state has ordered 10,000 of the special plates, and they are already being made.
Proceeds from sale of the plates would go to groups that help pregnant women who decide to put their babies up for adoption.
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