Narrow Custom License Plate Frames

[easysurfer]

Where can I order online narrow custom plate frames?

I have one but it's too big and actually, I got pulled over by an officer yesterday coming back from a vacation and (no exaggeration) he grilled me with questions as if I was Tony Montana from "Scarface" or Walter White from "Breaking Bad". I even got patted down for weapons.

So, i definitely I need a new plate frame to avoid that experience again.

At least, no ticket when he realized I wasn't a bad character.

 

[MRG]

J.C Whitney, I'd check them out.
MRG

 

[easysurfer]

J.C Whitney, I'd check them out.
MRG

Thanks. I'll have to check.

Guess I was breaking the law without knowing it.

For now, I just took the entire frame off and the Liscense plate is going naked

 

[zinger1457]

In Arizona if the frame covers any part of the state name it's considered a violation. I still see a lot of vehicles that violate the rule but my understanding is that the police here won't pull you over just for that violation but may add it on if pulled over for other violations like speeding.

 

[easysurfer]

I got pulled over for that very reason. Driving home while out of state coming back from a vacation with some friends, after pulled over, the officer said the frame can't block any of the state name. Then grilled me like I was a drug dealer and even patted me down for weapons. When he realized that I wasn't the second coming of Tony Montana or Walter White, he let me go without a warning or ticket. Overall, he was polite but the incident was a bit nerve wracking.

 

[MRG]

We have thy same thing, can't cover the plate. Seldom enforced, of course in this state you wouldn't have gotten patted down. You don't need a permit to carry in your car, it's considered part of your 'castle'.
While the plate wasn't legal, sure seems like a lot of hassle. Maybe the leo was having a bad day.
MRG

 

[eytonxav]

Gee, patting someone down for having too large a plate frame seems quite extreme to me without some reasonable cause that you might be a bad actor.
Lucky you didn't get a cavity search

 

[FIREd]

I got pulled over for that very reason. Driving home while out of state coming back from a vacation with some friends, after pulled over, the officer said the frame can't block any of the state name.

I didn't know it was illegal. Personally I don't like license plate frames, but DW does. And I am pretty sure that the frame provided by her local dealership here in San Francisco covers the state name. Is this a new law?

 

[easysurfer]

I didn't know it was illegal. Personally I don't like license plate frames, but DW does. And I am pretty sure that the frame provided by her local dealership here in San Francisco covers the state name. Is this a new law?

I think the law is state by state. At my home state, I've had the frame on for over 10 years and not pulled over once. But did read that it is illegal in my state to cover any numbers or letters of the plate.

Here's an article, in Iowa. May of this year.

The Iowa Supreme Court just ruled that drivers whose cars display the frames can be stopped if they obscure the small print below the plate numbers. The decision ended a five-year court battle stemming from the 2009 traffic stop of a man suspected of dealing drugs based on information from a confidential informant. The court ruled 5-2 last week that a 1984 law requiring drivers to “permit full view of all numerals and letters” on the plate includes the county name.

In Iowa, a license plate frame gets drivers tagged by police | Fox News

 

[easysurfer]

Gee, patting someone down for having too large a plate frame seems quite extreme to me without some reasonable cause that you might be a bad actor.
Lucky you didn't get a cavity search

He didn't touch any of my junk

I think he was itching to search my car by asking me if I had "weapons, pot, then cocaine, then meth, then over 2K in cash" but I said no to all. Then when he asked again if I had weapon, I said "no". When he asked if he could pat me down I said "ok" as I knew he won't find any on me.

He was probably surprised he found no weapon.

In a way, I guess the incident could be a blessing in disguise as I didn't get a citation or anything and now know the situation in my home state.

 

[FIREd]

I think the law is state by state. At my home state, I've had the frame on for over 10 years and not pulled over once. But did read that it is illegal in my state to cover any numbers or letters of the plate.

Here's an article, in Iowa. May of this year.



In Iowa, a license plate frame gets drivers tagged by police | Fox News

Oh, for some reason I thought you lived in California! Your screen name must have thrown me off.

 

[easysurfer]

Oh, for some reason I thought you lived in California! Your screen name must have thrown me off.

No..Not from Cali. Actually. A little nervous around water.

I was talking to someone the past couple of days who was from Hawaii. I asked her "Do you surf?" She didn't but I bet she gets asked that all the time.

 

[Koolau]

For the reasons (getting stopped, pat downs, etc.) mentioned, I never keep the dealer's large advertising cover. I just go naked as well.

Mentioned in at least one other thread, the license plate is just one of many "tricks" LEOs have for stopping someone they actually want to stop for some other reason. Think! The last time you got pulled over for something "major" (like speeding - assuming it was legit and not one or two mph over) I'd bet they didn't pat you down nor ask to search your car nor ask you questions about drugs. No. OP was profiled and targeted IMHO. Difficult to say why OP might have been profiled, but I'd bet a steak dinner on it - if there were a way to confirm it. The plate cover was the excuse to make the stop. If it hadn't been that, the officer would have found something else. My friend who is an ex LEO said he could find an excuse to pull someone over within 6 blocks. I believe him - and he is a straight arrow when it comes to LEOs. Just my $.02 worth so YMMV.

 

[ERD50]

Well, made me look.

Hmmm, My IL plate has a very stylized flowery script "Illinois" on top (so flowery as to be barely legible anyhow), and the dealer frame covers some of that. "Land of Lincoln" is in block letters and clearly visible (there's a cut-out for that). Annual sticker " ~ 1" x 2", shows OK.

Man, if I got a ticket for that, I'd be back at the dealer and furious. Who should know more about proper license display laws than a car dealer?

Of course, since I haven't been back there in nearly 14 years, I'm not sure they'd show much concern


-ERD50

 

[easysurfer]

The more I think about this, the more the idea of just having my plates go naked appeals to me.

 

[aaronc879]

I think he was itching to search my car by asking me if I had "weapons, pot, then cocaine, then meth, then over 2K in cash" but I said no to all.

Is there some law that prohibits having over 2K in cash in your car?

 

[easysurfer]

Is there some law that prohibits having over 2K in cash in your car?

I assume that in that state I was in that 2K or above and the cops probably could take the money saying that's probably drug money. Must my assumption.

Perhaps kind of like if you write a check for over 10K or a above, the bank scours over the transaction.

 

[W2R]

I assume that in that state I was in that 2K or above and the cops probably could take the money saying that's probably drug money. Must my assumption.

Perhaps kind of like if you write a check for over 10K or a above, the bank scours over the transaction.

They do? Wow. I guess I was lucky. I paid for my brand new Toyota Venza in full by check, and drove it home the same afternoon (back in 2010). Probably the dealership was used to all that scouring.

 

[gromit]

I assume that in that state I was in that 2K or above and the cops probably could take the money saying that's probably drug money. Must my assumption.

Perhaps kind of like if you write a check for over 10K or a above, the bank scours over the transaction.

Federal money laundering laws require forms be filled out for CASH transactions over $10,000, not for checks. Checks have a built in trail of ownership that makes them a poor choice for money laundering.

 

[aaronc879]

I assume that in that state I was in that 2K or above and the cops probably could take the money saying that's probably drug money. Must my assumption.

Perhaps kind of like if you write a check for over 10K or a above, the bank scours over the transaction.

I have over 2K in cash every time I go on vacation. I don't like using my debit card and don't own a credit card. I guess i'm lucky I haven't gotten pulled over. Can't imagine they could just take my money unless they found drugs in the car. Then I can understand it.

 

[easysurfer]

Federal money laundering laws require forms be filled out for CASH transactions over $10,000, not for checks. Checks have a built in trail of ownership that makes them a poor choice for money laundering.

One time I did write a check for over 10K to create a cashier's check. The bank teller said, "Be back.." then disappeared for about 20 minutes...and finally came back with the cashier's check.

 

[easysurfer]

I have over 2K in cash every time I go on vacation. I don't like using my debit card and don't own a credit card. I guess i'm lucky I haven't gotten pulled over. Can't imagine they could just take my money unless they found drugs in the car. Then I can understand it.

The guy who stopped me drove a K-9 unit vehicle. He probably sees everyone he stops as potential drug dealers (guilty before innocent mentality). Yes, I do think they have to find reason to believe you have drugs in the car before taking the cash. But a part of me says, if I said that I have over 2K in cash (even though no to the drug questions) he may have tried to find a reason to take the cash. Maybe not, but who knows.

 

[Koolau]

Saw a news program some years ago, so the details may be off a little. There was an I-10 corridor through the NOLA area where local jurisdictions where finding "excuses" to stop folks. Once they did, they found excuses to confiscate their cash (could be drug money). If any one howled, they could end up in jail. The "principle" of confiscating "suspect" money has been upheld by the USASC IIRC. Once money is seized, it is pretty much the individual's problem to "prove" that the money was obtained legally and was not intended to be used for illegal purposes. I have no idea what threshold is in place ($100?, $1000, $2000, etc.) but the principle HAS BEEN accepted IIRC.

Imagine being 2000 miles from home and a LEO pulls you over for "weaving" (this was the favorite stop method in NOLA IIRC - even though the "weaving" was BETWEEN the traffic lines.) The LEO then searched the car and the person (or else asked about money, etc.) eventually seizing the cash and leaving the person with no recourse but to fight in court (paying costs of course) or just going on his way without his cash. Eventually, THIS particular scam got so bad that it made the news and the police organizations were forced to stop it (I believe there was a hidden camera/news crew involved.) In any case, the law itself hasn't changed, but LEO organizations may have become a bit more discreet (until the next time.) Not indicting all LEOs or suggesting that this is a "usual" practice throughout the world. I'm simply highlighting my tag line. It might be a good idea to have a "tool" to use against drug mules and dealers moving large quantities of cash. But, anything that can be used against a criminal can be used against the honest person. I personally would like to have enough cash available to "buy" a new transmission if I get stranded in Lizard Lick or some place where they don't take plastic, etc.

Once again, I don't think this is a typical situation, but OP's experience makes me think either he was targeted legitimately (whatever that is) or for some "evil" intent. Who knows. BUT, in any case, review my tag line one more time as YMMV.

 

[Walt34]

Can't imagine they could just take my money unless they found drugs in the car. Then I can understand it.

There is some element missing from the story. I've never heard of this practice of simply seizing money without probable cause simply because it is a large sum compared to what most people carry. Done without due process, it is simply theft.

Saw a news program some years ago, so the details may be off a little. There was an I-10 corridor through the NOLA area where local jurisdictions where finding "excuses" to stop folks. Once they did, they found excuses to confiscate their cash (could be drug money). If any one howled, they could end up in jail. The "principle" of confiscating "suspect" money has been upheld by the USASC IIRC. Once money is seized, it is pretty much the individual's problem to "prove" that the money was obtained legally and was not intended to be used for illegal purposes. I have no idea what threshold is in place ($100?, $1000, $2000, etc.) but the principle HAS BEEN accepted IIRC.

Wow, things must sure be different there. The U.S. Constitution doesn't apply?

Not doubting your story but I can't help but believe there is something being left out. Or perhaps the corruption is that bad?

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

In 2000 DW and I bought a vintage Mercedes in Los Angeles and drove it home, loosely tracing historic Route 66.

When we got just past the Missouri state line, we got pulled over by a state trooper who claimed we were going 5 mph over the posted limit. We quickly concluded that our speed was not why he pulled us over.

He started angling toward getting our permission to search the car. Naive idiots that we were at the time, we consented. The trooper then went to his car and got a drug-sniffing dog out of the back seat.

Ultimately he and Fido found nothing, but we noticed on our way through Missouri several other motorists pulled over, trunks open and large dogs on the scene.

I mentioned the episode to a co-worker after I got home, and he pointed me to a Kansas City Star investigative series that accused the Missouri state patrol of diverting money seized in roadside searches to buy various law enforcement toys. Under state law, it was supposed to go into a public education fund, but the cops found a way to evade the law.