Disabled Veteran Sues Over Personalized License Plate

A lawsuit was filed Monday in a Kentucky federal district court by Shaun DeWaters, a disabled Marine Corps combat veteran, against the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. As reported by the Lexington Herald-Leader, the Kentucky Division of Motor Vehicle Licensing informed DeWaters that the personalized license plate which he has had for more than 12 years no longer complies with Kentucky law. According to the state, the plate which reads "INFDL" violates the ban on personalized plates that discriminate, represent a political belief or promote a specific faith, religion or anti-religion.  DeWaters says that troops in Iraq and Afghanistan took the label "Infidel" as a badge of honor after the enemy used the label for American troops. The lawsuit alleges that the ban on DeWaters license plate that was invoked when DeWaters attempted to transfer it to a new vehicle amounts to an infringement of 1st Amendment free speech rights.