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�Free speech� case could cost state Vanity plate issue hinges on whether there�s a limit on what can be printed The Associated Press PORTLAND � A Rogue Valley wine merchant who wants his license plates to read VINO, IN VINO or WINE doesn�t have a constitutional right to do so, several Oregon Supreme Court justices say. But they were also skeptical of the state Driver and Motor Vehicle Services argument that some topics can be off-limits because vanity plates are the speech of the state, not the motorist. The case, heard at the University of Oregon Law School on Thursday, could have important implications for the state�s free speech laws. If the court decides that vanity plates are speech, all restrictions on vanity plates could fall, forcing state officials to choose between the $2 million a year raised by the program and the prospect of profanities on state license plates. The court�s decision is probably at least six months away. In 1996, the DMV rejected southern Oregon wine merchant Michael Higgins� requested plates, saying they violated rules against alcohol-related references. References to sex, drugs and bodily functions also are not allowed. Higgins, who lives near Jacksonville, appealed, but in 2000, a divided Oregon Court of Appeals upheld the DMV�s decision. Edmund Spinney, Higgins� attorney, said Thursday that the Court of Appeals was wrong. He said a vanity plate is clearly the expression of the motorist, so the state is not free to restrict it under the Oregon Constitution. "The state is not issuing an opinion, only the motorist is," Spinney said. Justice Robert D. Durham said the state creates forums for speech all the time and places limits on them. "I can�t publish my doggerel in the literary magazine at (Portland State University) just because I like it," Durham said. Spinney responded that vanity plates are different. Unlike a literary magazine, which has limited space, everyone can have a vanity plate. Durham asked if Spinney�s argument meant that the constitution allowed "every common four-letter word." "I don�t see any reason" why not, Spinney said. Justice Susan Leeson asked why the state couldn�t place restrictions on the program if it created it. Spinney said Oregon courts have not answered that question but that traditionally the court has said the state cannot restrict speech except in limited circumstances. Mary Williams, an attorney with the Oregon Department of Justice, argued that people who apply for vanity plates are really just making suggestions to the state, which can decide what it wants to say. "It�s the state�s license plate," Williams said. Higgins, 65, attended the hearing sporting a "free speech" lapel pin. State officials have said they might cancel the program that raises about $2 million a year for litter patrol rather than allow profanities and other objectionable messages on license plates. Higgins said he does not see anything wrong with allowing license plates to say the same thing that a bumper sticker already can. "It�s not going to ruin the state of Oregon," he said. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.