So tonight, in ROLLA, , A state trooper pulls me over for my license plate covers that have a smoked tint to them, and says they are illegal because one they are tinted, but even the clear ones are illegal because they reflect light. So I've had these same type of plate covers on my cars for YEARS...but he says they are illegal in the state of Missouri. Does anybody know if this is true, or was he just being a dick?

He claims it is a $90 ticket, and he told me he gave me a written warning...yes you read that right, he told me he gave me a writen warning by putting me into the computer system but not giving me anything in writing. So next time I get pulled over with them I will apparently get a ticket...interesting.

*Admin Bump*

Split topic, so your topic gets a free bump.

technically, they can write people tickets for having tinted turn signal covers, brake light covers, license plate covers, or headlight covers.

It really pisses me off when people put those things over their tail-lights, because it makes it very difficult to see their brake lights. They mention very clearly on the box that they come in -FOR OFF ROAD USE ONLY-

Now a license plate cover, I cant really see that much of a problem with, but the light covers, those are definitely dangerous and if someone rear ends someone who has them on their car, the person with the light covers on theirs can get the blame for the accident because its the same as not having functioning brake lights.

Me: "Is it illegal to have a tinted license plate cover (or even a clear one, since it reflects light)?"



Cop from St. Louis: "A qualified "Yes". Many places have laws prohibiting the obstruction or alteration of a license plate. I don't know if a clear cover would qualify, but a colored one certainly would. License plates are designed so that they can be read and recognized from a certain distance. If the tinted cover prevents the plate from being read at that distance, or causes it to appear to be from a different state, as a different number or prevents officials from reading the COLOR CODED renewal tabs it hampers enforcement of registration and traffic laws and could potentially endanger police officers who can't read a license plate to see that it is a stolen car/wanted for homicide/robbery/burglary/drugs/armed and dangerous individual/ etc.

If somebody got a ticket for it I'd say it's a safe bet the jurisdiction that gave it to him has an appropriate ordinance to cover it. Believe it or not (and waayyy too many college students don't seem to believe - I can tell you that from personal experience) cops are not allowed to just make up things to give tickets for. There are plenty of violations to choose from if you want to give someone a ticket. No License Plate Light, Fail to signal lane change, Passing in the right hand lane, Fail to yield to pedestrian in a crosswalk, No front/rear bumper, Improperly displayed or attached plates (In car window or attached with wire), Failure to have two red tail/amber turn signal/white back up lights, etc. And I didn't include any of the really obscure ones such as "Exceeding 20 mph while fog lights are on".

The joke on most police departments about college kids is they are ALL pre-law when they get caught by the police doing something they shouldn't. No doubt Rolla Police encounter the same thing. It sure as heck seems to be the case when I'm dealing with Wash. U. students. "You can't lock me up." "Oh really? Watch this." Pinheads. They may tear me up on a calc quiz, but when it comes to law enforcement most really don't know squat.

Tell the guy that got the ticket to take it to court. If there is no matching ordinance the ticket'll get thrown out and the officer will be informed he can't enforce a non-existant law. Most likely he'll just sit in court for 4+ hours and have to pay even more than the $90 prepayment.

It's his time and his money. BTW, most cops get paid time and a half for sitting in court. So while the guy fighting the ticket forks out $90+ the cop is making $150 or so for the same 4 hours, win or lose."

Hope this helps.

I actually painted over my taillights with black nason paint in several very thinned out layers. It looks completely black normally, but when I hit the brakes, it shines through as if they were clear. Even more so than the taillight plexi blackouts I used to have, which didn't look nearly as good anyway. Its a good alternative, in my opinion (and cheaper, too, lol)

That makes sense. Because in the end, it's less about making the community better and more about some stressed out maniac on an authority trip.

I'm just surprised that I've never been bothered for them before, and I've had them for at least 5 years on my various other cars of the past.

And also the window tint, I guess it just depends on the cop and how bored he is.

Do you think maybe he might be putting him in jail for a reason? He just said how cops need a reason for writing a ticket/etc.

Are you from missouri? Because I'm pretty sure you go by your own state laws on that kind of stuff. Its called full faith and credit. An example is that if you live in kansas you can tint your windows a lot more than if you live in missouri. So if you are from kansas but are in missouri for school or something you can have your windows tinted according to your own kansas laws. This "full faith and credit" applies to a lot of things with automobiles. I don't feel like looking up license plate stuff but check on your state law and then don't worry about it.

Well of course they would have a reason. That doesn't make it a good one. Especially if the cop is wasting time threatening arrest instead of actually making an arrest.

http://home.pcisys.net/~bpc/auto_law/cover_mn.txt

here is michigans law. Nothing can obstruct the license plate. If missouri has the same thing, im sure the writing is similar.

http://www.dor.mo.gov/mvdl/drivers/dlgu ... stions.pdf

here is a sample test that says that a plate cover should not cover any information on the plate.

I saw a car around town (don't remember what it was) where the owner had taken the license plate and cut the edges off so that all that remained were the numbers. It was bent in a fashion so that it contoured the car's body kit.

I got pulled over last week because my license plate light was hanging down over the plate. It has been like that for as long as I've had the car, and I've been pulled over at night with it like that before and the officer didn't say anything. It passed inspection that way, too. The officer that pulled me over for it was really nice about it though.

Probably because you offered to have sex with him.

LOL