Pink License Plates!

Senator Fasano filed Senate Bill 538 on November 1, 2005 that would require "bright pink" license plates on vehicles driven by people convicted of DUI with restricted licenses. This bill calls for the first three characters on the pink plate to read DUI. This bill will also give the police the right to stop these vehicles without probable cause to check the driver. Senator Fasano researched the information leading to this bill after a constituent suggested he check how other states dealt with the serious issue of drunken driving. The passage of this bill may find an uphill battle in the Senate based on vocal opposition from the ACLU in Florida but something needs to be done with the ever-rising number of drunken driving incidents since education programs have done little to stem the flow of law breakers in our state. Various methods of embarrassment have worked for law breakers in other areas using innovative ways of imposing sentences. In St. Petersburg, the city council decided to post names of individuals soliciting prostitutes in the downtown area. This posting of names worked to clean up the image and streets of St. Petersburg. Don't forget the pink underwear that the sheriff of Phoenix Arizona makes the prisoners wear in custody while eating their baloney sandwiches and sleeping in tents. Who knows, maybe Senator Fasano's bill will lower the number of drunken driving incidents in our state by pure, public humiliation.