In Valov v. Department of Motor Vehicles, (Sept. 20, 2005), a California appellate court rejected free exercise claims under the U.S. and California constitutions raised to the requirement that a driver's license contain a photo of the licensee. Jack Peter Valov is an orthodox member of the Molokan religious faith. He believes that the Biblical prohibition against "graven images" prohibits the photographing of his image.
The Court rejected Valov's First Amendment claim because the photograph requirement is a neutral, generally applicable requirement that is rationally related to achieving the legitimate governmental interests of promoting highway safety, discouraging fraud, and deterring identity theft. In doing so, the Vehicle Code only incidentally burdening Valov's religious beliefs and practices. The Court rejected a free exercise claim under the California Constitution because the photograph requirement was narrowly drawn to achieve compelling and legitimate state purposes.
