Elderly Florida Woman Gets a New License Plate in the Mail. She’s Shocked by the Explicit Message Written on It, but Thinks She Might Keep It
Officials can't explain how it happened.
A Florida woman was surprised when a new license plate arrived with her vehicle registration renewal and appeared to contain an inappropriate message. Nancy Dello Stritto, a 77-year-old Pompano Beach resident, initially wanted nothing to do with the plate. She later reconsidered after friends and family encouraged her to keep it.
The plate reads “SQZ A55,” a combination of letters and numbers that some people may interpret as a crude phrase. According to CBS News Miami, Dello Stritto discovered the plate when she opened her mail and did not expect to receive a replacement tag.
“When I saw that, I went ballistic. I said, ‘How could that pass inspection?’” Dello Stritto told the outlet.
She may keep it for the “honks”
At first, she said she did not want to drive around with the plate, according to Florida news outlet WFOR. Dello Stritto told the outlet she felt the message was inappropriate for someone her age and questioned how the combination made it through the state’s license plate process.
The situation changed after people around her weighed in. Reports say that the plate became a topic of conversation in her retirement community, with opinions divided. Her sons and their friends encouraged her to keep it, and Dello Stritto said the tally was 16-1 in favor of holding onto the plate.
By the time she spoke with CBS News Miami again, Dello Stritto said she planned to keep the plate for now. She intended to contact the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles about the issue.
“I’m resigned to it; maybe it was destined for it to be on my car,” Dello Stritto told CBS News Miami. She added, “I can handle it; maybe I’ll even get some honks.”
The plate somehow slipped by the review process
Florida license plates are manufactured at the PRIDE Tag and License Plate Plant at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford, according to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The facility has produced the state’s plates since 1927 and manufactures the plates distributed throughout Florida.
After production, plates move through the state’s distribution system before reaching county agencies that handle vehicle registrations. CBS News Miami reported that Dello Stritto’s plate was mailed through the Broward County Property Tax Collector’s office.
The Broward County office told CBS News Miami it would replace a plate considered offensive at no cost to the driver. Officials have not explained how the plate was issued.
CBS News Miami also reported that officials had not explained how the combination passed through the state’s review process. Florida does review personalized plate requests for potentially objectionable combinations, but Dello Stritto’s plate was not a custom request.
(Featured image: Image by Jaycarlcooper, CC BY-SA 3.0., Image by Ron Lach on Pexels)
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