Ariz. Drivers Can Get ‘Choose Life’ Plates

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said today that Arizona motorists can have specialty state license plates that contain anti-abortion messages.

The unanimous decision (PDF) by the San Francisco-based court reverses rulings by a federal trial judge and Arizona's License Plate Commission, according to Capitol Media Services.

The Arizona Life Coalition originally applied for specialty plates in January 2002, then sued the state in September 2003.

Writing for the court, Circuit Judge Richard Tallman said that refusing the message based on content violated the First Amendment. The court also noted that the reason for denying the plate request, that the message is controversial, is not a reason permitted under Arizona law.

Last week, a federal judge in Missouri also ruled that state's law barring "Choose Life" plates is unconstitutional, the Kansas City Star reported.

“We are very pleased and very excited that the judge upheld our client’s First Amendment right,” Joel Oster, a Kansas lawyer representing Choose Life Missouri told the Star. “We believe the pro-life message is very important, and adopting children is a message everybody should be able to agree with.”