South Florida police department apologizes to man for 'invalid' arrest under obscured license plate law

DAVIE, Fla. - A South Florida man was arrested under a new Florida license plate law after officials say his plate was obscured. 

What we know:

Now, attorneys for Demarquize Dawson, 40, called the experience for their client "traumatizing."

In a complaint affidavit, the officer said on Dec. 14 Dawson’s license plate was obstructed with dark tints. A chrome license plate border was obstructing the Florida license plate, the officer said. Dawson was arrested for the violation, taken to the hospital for medical clearance and then spent a night and the following day in jail. 

Dawson's attorney said Dawson went to the hospital for a panic attack. 

A photo of Dawson’s license plate shows the "S" in "Sunshine State" appearing to be partially covered. No other words, nor the registration tag, were hidden. Dawson’s attorneys said under the new law, there’s no problem with having "Sunshine State" covered. 

In an image of an acceptable license plate, provided by the Florida Department of Highway Safety, the words "Sunshine State" are partially visible.

The backstory:

After the Florida license plate law went into effect on Oct. 1 – banning anything preventing the ability to record the primary features or details of a license plate, including the numbers or validation sticker – local police department released images of acceptable and not acceptable license plate frames. 

"We will not be arresting people just for having a basic, simple plate frame," Casselberry Police said in a Facebook statement. "Our focus is on intentional alterations, blocked characters, and unreadable plates or decals. It is possible to have cosmetic accessories that stay within the law."

The Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles later issued a public clarification of the law and guidance to law enforcement agencies. 

"The Department of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles does not consider the information on the bottom of the plate to be a primary feature of the plate," the state said in a memo released on Dec. 12 – two days before Dawson was arrested. 

So, license plate frames aren't completely banned. Frames are allowed as long as they don’t cover the plate number or the registration sticker in the top right corner, according to state officials. 

What they're saying:

The Davie Police Department offered apologies to Dawson, admitting the arrest was invalid. 

"At the initial release of this updated law, the wording was vague, unclear and appeared to be open for misinterpretation," the police department said. "Since the release of a memo of clarification from the Florida Police Chief’s Association was provided to our department, our officers are educated on the application and use of this statute."