Ark. Code Ann. » Title 27 Chapter 14
Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (2020)

Improper use of evidences of registration

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  1. No person shall lend to another any certificate of title, registration certificate, registration plate, special plate, or permit issued to him or her if the person desiring to borrow it would not be entitled to the use thereof, nor shall any person knowingly permit their use by one not entitled thereto, nor shall any person display upon a vehicle any registration certificate, registration plate, or permit not issued for the vehicle or not otherwise lawfully thereon under this chapter.
  2. Any violation of this section is a misdemeanor.

History. Acts 1949, No. 142, § 77; A.S.A. 1947, § 75-177.

Case Notes

Circuit Court Judge Candidate.

Candidate for circuit court judge was not disqualified from running due to his conviction for a violation of this section, as misdemeanor “infamous crimes” under Ark. Const. Art. 5, § 9 and § 7-1-101 are misdemeanor offenses in which “the finder of fact was required to find, or the defendant to admit, an act of deceit, fraud, or false statement”, and the appellate court could not say that a violation of this section required a finding or admission of deceit, fraud, or false statement. Weeks v. Thurston, 2020 Ark. 64, 594 S.W.3d 23 (2020).

Mental State.

Violation of this section does not necessarily involve dishonesty or false statement, and the Supreme Court overrules Fronterhouse v. State, 2015 Ark. App. 211, on that specific point. Weeks v. Thurston, 2020 Ark. 64, 594 S.W.3d 23 (2020).

While deceit, fraud, or a false statement certainly can be present in a violation of this section, a finder of fact is not required under the statute to find deceit, fraud, or a false statement. Furthermore, only one of the three ways one can violate this section requires a culpable mental state—knowingly permitting. Weeks v. Thurston, 2020 Ark. 64, 594 S.W.3d 23 (2020).

Reasonable Cause.

A violation of this section provides a police officer with reasonable cause to believe that the driver of the vehicle is committing a violation of the law in his presence. Wilburn v. State, 317 Ark. 73, 876 S.W.2d 555 (1994).

There was probable cause to support defendant's arrest where defendant was exceeding the posted speed limit, defendant was driving a car with fictitious tags, which was a crime, and both the vehicle and defendant matched the description of the robbery suspect that the police were given. Medlock v. State, 79 Ark. App. 447, 89 S.W.3d 357 (2002).

Where a police officer ran the tags on a vehicle and learned that it had a fictitious license plate, the officer had probable cause to stop the car; in addition, where police discovered the presence of marijuana inside the vehicle during the traffic stop, the subsequent search of defendant's shoe, which yielded marijuana, was a search incident to a lawful arrest. Thornton v. State, 85 Ark. App. 31, 144 S.W.3d 766 (2004).

Cited: Hazelwood v. State, 328 Ark. 602, 945 S.W.2d 365 (1997); Burris v. State, 330 Ark. 66, 954 S.W.2d 209 (1997).

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 12 cases, 1994–2020 · leading case: Jud. Discipline & Disability Comm'n v. Thompson, 16 S.W.3d 212 (Ark. 2000).
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Jud. Discipline & Disability Comm'n v. Thompson, 16 S.W.3d 212 (Ark. 2000). · cites it 4× “1999), when he violated Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (Repl. 1994), by placing the license tag belonging to his 1981 Toyota on his Ford pickup truck.”
Doubleday v. State, 138 S.W.3d 112 (Ark. Ct. App. 2003). · cites it 4× “However, while Doubleday's explanation that tags on the trailer were accidently switched need not be believed by the trier of fact, it is still a circumstantial evidence case, and simply having the wrong tags on a trailer does not exclude every other reasonable hypothesis than…”
Schneider v. State, 2015 Ark. 152, 459 S.W.3d 296. · cites it 4× “The State asserts that Officer Wiens had probable cause to stop the vehicle pursuant to Arkansas Code Annotated section 27-14-306(a) (Repl. 2008), which prohibits the display on a vehicle of a registration plate not issued for the vehicle.”
Adam G. Weeks v. John Thurston, in His Off. Capacity as Arkansas Sec'y of State; Judy Miller; Cara Bryant, Keith Declerk, & Carolyn Towell, in Their Off. Capacities as Comissioners of the Randolph Cnty. Election Comm'n; Michael Bradley, Judy Verkler, & Tommy Holland, in Their Off. Capacities as Commissioners of the Lawrence Cnty. Election Comm'n; Lou Ann Cushman, Holly Mclaran, & Homer Wiles, in Their Off. Capacities as Commissioners of the Sharp Cnty. Election Comm'n; & David Dickson, Alice James, & Donna Gould, in Their Off. Capacities as Commissioners of the Jackson Cnty. Election Comm'n, 2020 Ark. 64, 594 S.W.3d 23. · cites it 31× “2019), and one violation of the “fictitious tags” statute, Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (Repl. 2014). She 1 On November 7, 2019, orders to seal Weeks’s four hot-check misdemeanors were filed in the Faulkner County District Court pursuant to the Comprehensive Criminal Record…”
Burris v. State, 954 S.W.2d 209 (Ark. 1997). · cites it 2× “2d 555 (1994), we held that an officer had probable cause to stop a motorist when he discovered that the vehicle bore a license plate which was issued to a different car in violation of Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (Repl. 1994). Thus, the relevant inquiry is whether Captain Best…”
Thornton v. State, 144 S.W.3d 766 (Ark. Ct. App. 2004). · cites it 4× “3d 357 (2002) (holding that officer had probable cause to arrest driver of car for having a fictitious license plate in violation of Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (a) (Repl. 1994)).”
Medlock v. State, 89 S.W.3d 357 (Ark. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 2× “See Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (a) (Repl. 1994).”
Jud. Discipline & Disability Comm'n v. Simes, 2009 Ark. 543, 354 S.W.3d 72. · cites it 2× “• Operating a motor vehicle with a fictitious license plate, in violation of Arkansas Code Annotated section 27-14-306. • Depositing client funds in a personal account, rather than an identifiable trust account.”
Wilburn v. State, 876 S.W.2d 555 (Ark. 1994). · cites it 2× “See Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (Repl. 1994). Thus, the officer had reasonable cause to believe that the driver of the Cadillac was committing a violation of the law in his presence.”
Fronterhouse v. State, 2015 Ark. App. 211, 463 S.W.3d 312. · cites it 2× “Arkansas Code Annotated section 27-14-306(a) (Repl. 2014) (improper use of evidence of registration, or “fictitious tags,” as denominated by Fronter-house) provides in pertinent part: No person shall lend to another any certificate of title, registration certificate,…”
Hazelwood v. State, 945 S.W.2d 365 (Ark. 1997). · cites it 2× “See Ark. Code Ann. §§ 27-14-306 and 27-16-303(a)(l) (Repl.”
Schneider v. State, 2014 Ark. App. 711, 452 S.W.3d 601. · cites it 2× “Different courts have reached different conclusions on the issue presented here. Today, however, we hold that a color discrepancy like the one presented in this case permits an officer to reasonably suspect that, for example, the tags are fictitious or that the car may be stolen…”
Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306(a): 4 cases
Schneider v. State, 2015 Ark. 152, 459 S.W.3d 296. “The State asserts that Officer Wiens had probable cause to stop the vehicle pursuant to Arkansas Code Annotated section 27-14-306(a) (Repl. 2008), which prohibits the display on a vehicle of a registration plate not issued for the vehicle.”
Thornton v. State, 144 S.W.3d 766 (Ark. Ct. App. 2004). “3d 357 (2002) (holding that officer had probable cause to arrest driver of car for having a fictitious license plate in violation of Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (a) (Repl. 1994)).”
Adam G. Weeks v. John Thurston, in His Off. Capacity as Arkansas Sec'y of State; Judy Miller; Cara Bryant, Keith Declerk, & Carolyn Towell, in Their Off. Capacities as Comissioners of the Randolph Cnty. Election Comm'n; Michael Bradley, Judy Verkler, & Tommy Holland, in Their Off. Capacities as Commissioners of the Lawrence Cnty. Election Comm'n; Lou Ann Cushman, Holly Mclaran, & Homer Wiles, in Their Off. Capacities as Commissioners of the Sharp Cnty. Election Comm'n; & David Dickson, Alice James, & Donna Gould, in Their Off. Capacities as Commissioners of the Jackson Cnty. Election Comm'n, 2020 Ark. 64, 594 S.W.3d 23. “2019), and one violation of the “fictitious tags” statute, Ark. Code Ann. § 27-14-306 (Repl. 2014). She 1 On November 7, 2019, orders to seal Weeks’s four hot-check misdemeanors were filed in the Faulkner County District Court pursuant to the Comprehensive Criminal Record…”
Fronterhouse v. State, 2015 Ark. App. 211, 463 S.W.3d 312. “Arkansas Code Annotated section 27-14-306(a) (Repl. 2014) (improper use of evidence of registration, or “fictitious tags,” as denominated by Fronter-house) provides in pertinent part: No person shall lend to another any certificate of title, registration certificate,…”
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