First Amendment Might Protect FTP&ATF License Plate
The Fourth Circuit ruled that personalized license plate messages constitute private speech protected by the First Amendment. The case concerned Curtis Whateley’s request for a plate reading “FTP&ATF,” which Virginia revoked as vulgar. The court remanded the case for further analysis of the appropriate forum and the reasonableness of the restriction.
- ▪Curtis Whateley applied for a personalized Virginia license plate displaying the characters “FTP&ATF,” meaning “Fuck the Police & Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.”
- ▪Virginia initially issued the plate but later revoked it, citing vulgarity and potential promotion of violence.
- ▪The Fourth Circuit held that such vanity plate messages are private speech, not government speech, and therefore receive First Amendment protection.
- ▪The decision sent the case back to the district court to determine the proper forum analysis and whether Virginia’s restriction is reasonable and viewpoint‑neutral.
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| Canonical URL | https://reason.com/volokh/2026/07/31/first-amendment-might-protect-ftpatf-license-plate/ |
| Publication time | Fri, 31 Jul 2026 23:09:43 +0000 |
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Free Speech First Amendment Might Protect FTP&ATF License Plate The Fourth Circuit considers "a question that has divided ... courts ...: whether the character combinations on personalized license plates ... are government speech or private speech." Eugene Volokh | 7.31.2026 7:09 PM From today's opinion in Whateley v. Lackey, written by Fourth Circuit Judge Pamela Harris and joined by Judges Agee and Keenan: In Virginia, drivers may personalize their license plates with their own chosen character combinations. Virginia allows them to do so for a fee, and subject to certain restrictions for vulgarity and the like.
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