COLUMBUS – The deadly shooting of a black motorist by a while police officer who stopped him because he did not have a license plate on the front of his car has renewed the discussion about the usefulness of the extra plate, which is required in Ohio but not in many other states.
A call for their removal was part of a sweeping statement issued by Rep. Alicia Reece (D-Cincinnati), president of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus, following the indictment of University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing in the shooting death of Samuel DuBose.
“What happened here is not just isolated to Cincinnati, but is part of the fabric of what people feel is a pattern nationally,” Reece said. “While today I call for peace and calm in my hometown, I am also calling for immediate action on comprehensive justice reform as outlined by the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus in May. I am also renewing my call for Ohio to follow the example of our surrounding states and eliminate the front license plate requirement.”
None of Ohio’s border states require two plates. But 34 states do, mostly in the Northeast and the West.
State legislatures that write license plate laws constantly debate the front plate issue. States without a requirement, such as Michigan, contemplate adding one — citing evidence that the front plate is a useful tool for law enforcement.
Meanwhile, states requiring the front plate talk of scrapping the mandate, as a cost savings to drivers.
Few front-plate laws have changed in recent years.