Florida Statutes

Fla. Stat. § 320.261 (2025)

Attaching registration license plate not assigned unlawful; penalty.

✓ 2025 Florida Statutes — current through the 2025 Regular Session
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320.261 Attaching registration license plate not assigned unlawful; penalty.Any person who knowingly attaches to any motor vehicle or mobile home any registration license plate, or who knowingly attaches any validation sticker or mobile home sticker to a registration license plate, which plate or sticker was not issued and assigned or lawfully transferred to such vehicle, is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
History.s. 1, ch. 59-478; s. 199, ch. 71-136; s. 7, ch. 72-79; s. 47, ch. 83-318.

Arrestable Offenses under F.S. 320.261

M = misdemeanor · F = felony · degree: F=1st S=2nd T=3rd
§320.261NONMOVING TRAFFIC VIOLATTACH REGISTRATION LICENSE PLATE NOT ASSIGNEDM · 2nd

Civil Citations under F.S. 320.261

Driver's license points · R = revocation · S = suspension
§320.261Attaching TAG (license plate) not assigned
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 13 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1981–2026 · leading case: State of Florida v. Kerrick Van Teamer, 151 So. 3d 421 (Fla. 2014).
State of Florida v. Kerrick Van Teamer, 151 So. 3d 421 (Fla. 2014). · cites it 2× “”); § 320.261 (making it illegal to “knowingly attach[] to any motor vehicle” a license plate that was not “lawfully transferred to such vehicle”); § 320.”
Aders v. State, 67 So. 3d 368 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011). · cites it 3× “But, Deputy Pickering suspected Aders of improperly transferring a license plate, which is a second-degree misdemeanor under section 320.261, Florida Statutes (2010).”
State v. Rodriguez, 575 So. 2d 1262 (Fla. 1991). “[2] The other charges were misdemeanor offenses of attaching a registration license plate not assigned, section 320.261 of the Florida Statutes (1987); and driving while license suspended or revoked.”
Indialantic Police Dept. v. Zimmerman, 677 So. 2d 1307 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996). · cites it 2× “§ 320.261, Fla. Stat. (1993). See generally, State v.”
Phillips v. State, 531 So. 2d 1044 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988). · cites it 3× “Officer Hartman pulled the vehicle over for an improper license tag in violation of section 320.261, Florida Statutes (1987).”
State v. Marrero, 890 So. 2d 1278 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005). · cites it 2× “This would have been a violation of section 320.261, Florida Statutes (1997), a second-degree misdemeanor.”
State v. Carmody, 553 So. 2d 1366 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989). · cites it 2× “NOTES [1] § 320.261, Fla. Stat. (1987). [2] §§ 316.”
Parrish v. State, 402 So. 2d 530 (Fla. 3d DCA 1981). · cites it 2× “Nonetheless, the state failed to demonstrate that the defendant knowingly possessed the unlawful automobile license plate contrary to Section 320.261, Florida Statutes (1979).”
Harris v. Wingo (M.D. Fla. 2019). · cites it 2× “Fla. Stat. § 320.261 provides that an individual commits the offense of driving with an invalid license plate when that person “knowingly attaches to any motor vehicle or mobile home any registration license plate, or who knowingly attaches any validation sticker or mobile home…”
State of Florida v. Davis (N.D. Fla. 2025). · cites it 2× “14 ; and (3) one count of “Attached Tag Not Assigned to Vehicle,” in violation of Fla. Stat. §320.261 . Davis attempts to remove both criminal prosecutions and the civil traffic violations to federal court pursuant to 28 U.”
Anthony Maurice Brown v. State of Florida (Fla. 4th DCA 2021). “The State concedes the officer did not witness the defendant attaching an unassigned tag to his license plate.”
Rickey Lamar Evans, Jr. v. Sec'y, Dep't of Corr. (M.D. Fla. 2026). “§ 320.261 , which makes it a second-degree misdemeanor to “knowingly attach[]” a license plate to a vehicle to which that plate is not lawfully assigned.”
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