San Francisco man, state senator vow to fight DMV over 'LTHR DDY' vanity plate rejection

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A San Francisco man is fighting back after the DMV rejected his application for a vanity license plate reading LTHR DDY, shorthand for "leather daddy."

Robert Haynes applied for the plate for his motorcycle in December. He received a letter stating his application was being processed. But one month later, Haynes received another letter denying his plate and refunding his $50 application fee.

The letter stated the application was denied because, "The configuration has a sexual connotation or is a term of lust or depravity."

That's when Haynes decided to contact state Senator Scott Wiener. "I've known that he is a big advocate of not just gay rights and elevating the understanding of various components of gay culture, but also that he's a big advocate of first amendment and freedom of speech," Haynes said.

Wiener got back to Haynes within 24 hours and sent a letter to the DMV asking them to overturn the decision. "The leather community is about so many things, including freedom and diversity. It's such a critical community and part of San Francisco's fabric. To boil it down and say it's just about lust or depravity, it's just very backwards thinking," said Wiener.

If the DMV doesn't overturn the rejection, Wiener said he would follow up and arrange a meeting with the acting director.

"It's not just about one vanity plate. It's about a major agency in California sending a signal that one of our communities, the leather community, is simply about sex and lust and depravity, and that's just not what the state of California should be sending as a message," said Wiener.