Maryland Attorney General Pushes for Recall of Confederate License Plate: Report

Maryland has reportedly asked federal authorities for permission to recall more than 100 license plates in circulation that bear the Confederate flag.

The state allowed the Maryland Sons of Confederate Veterans to release a Confederate flag license plate in 1996 and after “numerous, substantial complaints... about the apparent negative racial connotations of the logo design,” the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration went to court in 1997 to try to recall the plates, according to court filings. The judge determined that the design was protected under the First Amendment.

On Friday, Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh asked federal authorities to override the injunction from the 1997 court case so Maryland could recall the plates, USA Today reported.

Lawmakers in Maryland have been pushing for the recall of the plate after Dylann Roof killed nine African-American churchgoers last month during a Bible study in a church in Charleston, S.C. Images widely distributed of Roof show him holding a Confederate flag, and he has reportedly told authorities he was attempting to start a race war.

Related: Mayor Calls for End to Confederate License Plate in Maryland

The request by Maryland’s attorney general to allow the state to recall the plates comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that Texas could deny a request for a Confederate flag design on license plates because the objects contain “government speech,” outside the traditional context of the First Amendment as it pertains to individuals.

There are 178 vehicles, including 27 motorcycles, that have the Confederate flag plate in Maryland, according to WMDT.

The Confederate flag plate was no longer available Friday through the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration, and WMDT reports that the administration under Gov. Larry Hogan has suspended its production.