Free Speech

Virginia Man Argues His 'FTP&ATF' License Plate Is Free Speech. The Supreme Court Might Hear His Case.

A federal appeals court ruled that Curtis Whateley's anti-police vanity plate was private speech protected by the First Amendment. Virginia says it will seek review from the Supreme Court.

C.J. Ciaramella | 8.14.2026 3:11 PM

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A Virginia man's anti-police license plate is at the center of what could be a landmark First Amendment case, following a federal appeals court ruling in his favor last month.

Virginia motorist Curtis M. Whateley says he has a free speech right to keep his customized license plate, which reads "FTP&ATF," an abbreviation that foul-mouthed puzzle-solvers will decipher as "Fuck the police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms." The State of Virginia argues that it has the right to revoke Whateley's plate because license plates are government-owned, not a public soapbox. The state says it's going to take its case to the Supreme Court.

The case highlights a niche, often amusing, but still consequential issue in First Amendment law: whether a vanity license plate is private or government speech.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2015 that Texas could deny a group's application for a specialty license plate design showing the Confederate flag. Most U.S. district courts and state courts interpreting the decision have held that, while government-run vanity plate programs are a nonpublic forum, the specific character combination of the plate is private speech, which restricts the government from censorship based on viewpoint.

But until the U.S. Court of........

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