DMV apologizes for license plate that mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Owner's son calls it misunderstanding
The California Department of Motor Vehicles issued an apology for an "unacceptable and disturbing" personalized license plate that the agency said displayed hate speech related to the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
The watchdog organization StopAntisemitism posted a photo on X of the license plate on a Cybertruck that celebrated "terrorism against the Jewish people."
In the photo, the license plate read "LOLOCT7." LOL is an abbreviation for laugh out loud.
The watchdog organization says the plate seems to reference Oct. 7, when Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing about 1,200 people and kidnapping about 250. The attack triggered an ongoing retaliation by Israel in neighboring Gaza.
But the son of the car's owner told KABC news that the personalized plate was not a reference to the Oct. 7 attack but was a reference to the owner, who is a Filipino grandfather. The LOLO in the plates means grandfather in Tagalog and CT refers to the Cybertruck, while 7 represents the owner's seven children, according to the news station.
The organization said the vehicle was spotted at the intersection of Jefferson and Sepulveda boulevards in Culver City.
On X, the DMV issued a statement Thursday, saying the department is "taking swift action to recall these shocking plates, and we will immediately strengthen our internal review process to ensure such an egregious oversight never happens again."
The department apologized that the personalized plate was not rejected during the review process.
A spokesperson for the department told The Times the license plate should not have passed the review process and, after it was flagged on social media, many people who alerted the department found it offensive.
"The use of hateful language is not only a clear violation of our policies but also a violation of our core values to proudly serve the public and ensure safe and welcoming roadways," the statement said.
Read more: Amnesty International says Israel is committing genocide in Gaza
According to the department spokesperson, the license plate owner will be notified about language of their plate and the recall of their license plate. The owner of the vehicle has the right to appeal the department's decision.
The department will go through its license plate database to identify whether any configurations of this offensive language exists on any other license plates and recall them, the spokesperson said.
"StopAntisemitism was appalled to discover a vehicle with a license plate glorifying the 10/7 massacre of innocent Israelis," said Liora Rez, executive director of the organization.
"With the swift action of thousands of emails from our committed supporters, the California DMV has now recalled the plate," she said.
Times assistant editor Luke Money contributed to this report.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
