Magistrate Recommends No Injunction In VT Religious Plate Case

The Rutland, Vermont Herald reports today that a federal magistrate has recommended against issuing an injunction to require the state Department of Motor Vehicles to issue a West Rutland man a vanity license plate with a biblical message, "JN36TN", on it. (See earlier posting.) However the magistrate refused to dismiss the case entirely. Attorneys have until next week to decide if they will file any objections to the report. Then it will be up to a U.S. District Court judge to decide whether to adopt the magistrate's recommendations. The Magistrate wrote: "Although the statute appears to be viewpoint neutral on its face, Byrne asserts that some religious references have been permitted by the DMV. If that is the case, Byrne may have a viable equal protection claim, as distinctions between religious speech would not reasonable."