Houston man's naughty license plate could get the ax

William Long ordered a custom license plate that said "DV3H KID." He revealed the plate's true meaning by placing it upside down on his vehicle. William Long ordered a custom license plate that said "DV3H KID." He revealed the plate's true meaning by placing it upside down on his vehicle. Photo: William Long Photo: William Long Image 1 of / 152 Caption Close Houston man's naughty license plate could get the ax 1 / 152 Back to Gallery

A driver attempting to order naughty custom license plates is nothing new. Most state governments are schooled in slang terms and various curse words that the worst plates never make it out onto the streets.

But every now and then something slips through, only to be reported or otherwise discovered by officials and pulled off the road.

This week time finally ran out for a Houston man, Safer Hassan, when he got a letter from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles telling him that his custom plate will be canceled within the month.

Hassan told KPRC-TV that he’s had his 370H55V plates for three years now. On the face of it seems innocent enough.

If you look at the plate upside down, it’s something quite the opposite. It’s a funny plate, but not up to the state of Texas’ standards for license plate expression. Hassan told the outlet that he plans on appealing the state’s decision in the hopes of keeping his plate.

The 370H55V plate though is nothing new. It’s even made it into the Urban Dictionary.

Drivers in other states have gotten away with it until their respective department of motor vehicles gets wise and deems them profane.

We've all seen personalized Texas license plates, but what exactly are the standards of decency for the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles?

According to the agency, personalized plates are declined in part if the numbers and words conflict with the existing plate numbering system or if they duplicate a plate already in use.

Back in 2013 the director of the Vehicle Titles & Registration Division, Randy Elliston, said he takes a second look at the ones that have been declined.

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If you want personalized plates, Elliston said you should think twice about how your idea could be construed. Elliston tries to think of everyone on the roadway who might be offended, but he wants Texans to exercise their creativity, too.

"The primary purpose is to register the vehicle and identify the owner, but we want people to also have fun and buy personalized plates," he said. "It is a great revenue generator for the state."

Some are shot down because of questions of decency. Elliston looks over these potential plates for content that could be objectionable or misleading. A board of directors applies the rules of what can and cannot become a license plate.

Curse words are a no-go for a Texas plate.

References to sex acts, sexual body parts, and excretory functions and their byproducts are also prohibited. Hateful, derogatory references toward people or specific groups will be rejected, as will threats of violence or harm.

"Sometimes we'll get one out there that isn't supposed to be," Elliston said.