If you’re looking for God, keep your eyes peeled for a white Jeep Grand Cherokee with custom Kentucky plates that read “IM GOD.”
Well, you’re likely at least to encounter Bennie Hart, although you may not find the Almighty behind the wheel. After being denied the vanity plate because it was “vulgar or profane,” the self-described atheist since he was 15 sued the state in 2016.
Kentucky had a different opinion regarding the views expressed on the license plate, even though it was acceptable in Ohio, where Hart had been using it without incident for more than ten years.
The customization was rejected because it was vulgar and obscene, according to a letter Hart received from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet denying his application after he attempted to get the plate changed after moving from Ohio.
The letter explained that “Personalized plates are regulated by the Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) and Kentucky Administrative Regulations (KAR). Your application for the personalized license plate IM GOD has been rejected because it does not meet the requirements of KRS 186.174 and 601 KAR 9:012. Section 5,” The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet later declared the plate was objectionable to good taste and decency, according to LEX18 News, saying, “These laws dictate that a personalized plate may not be vulgar or obscene.”
The 80-year-old great-grandfather of three who hates to be told no and believed the state had violated his constitutional rights, made the decision to take the government on, said, “I tell people, ‘Stand up.’ The government will run all over you if you let them. You know if you roll over and play dead, they’ll roll over you.”
“I think the Constitution is the most sacred thing that’s ever been written. It guarantees your right to religion, speech, your right to assemble,” Hart, a retired postal worker explained, claiming that upholding the Constitution was his civic duty and that he had taken an oath to do so.
“It’s just a beautiful document, my first cousin eight times removed is Thomas Jefferson,” he continued.
And after a three-year legal battle, the judge then ruled in Hart’s favor, saying that denying him the license plate is a violation of the First Amendment, and taxpayers must foot the bill, after Hart fought the state for the right to call himself “God” on his license plate and sued the commonwealth, enlisting the support of the ACLU and the Freedom from Religion Foundation to take up his case.
Kentucky must cover Hart’s legal costs, the federal judge said, WKRC reported. And the taxpayers will bear a hefty price tag of more than $150,000 for the commonwealth. Hart believes that the court battle would teach others a lesson in civics, but all he gets out of it is his license plates, which he now has on the front and back of his car.
Hart told Kentucky’s FOX19 he hopes his plates raise awareness that religious beliefs are open to individual interpretation. As for the specific claim made on the plates, he has an answer for that, too:
“I’ve been an atheist since I was 15,” he said, “I can prove I’m God. You can’t prove I’m not. Now, how can I prove I’m God? Well, there are six definitions for God in the American Heritage Dictionary, and number five is a very handsome man, and my wife says I’m a very handsome man, and nobody argues with my wife.”
Watch the video report below:
Sources: Taphaps, Local12, Thedrive
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