Judge Rules Virginia Can Ban Confederate Flag License Plates

Henry E. Kidd, state commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, is seen during a news conference on the steps of the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Motor Vehicles in Richmond, Va., Thursday, May 2, 2002... Henry E. Kidd, state commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, is seen during a news conference on the steps of the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Motor Vehicles in Richmond, Va., Thursday, May 2, 2002, to discuss the proposed Confederate license plate. Kidd is holding a smaple plate. (AP Photo/Mark Gormus) MORE LESS
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A federal judge in Danville, Va., on Friday ruled that the state is allowed to stop issuing license plates with Confederate flag symbols, according to the Danville Register and Bee.

After the deadly shooting at a historic black church in Charleston sparked a national debate on Confederate symbolism, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) directed the state to begin the process of removing Confederate flags from state-issued license plates.

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring asked the court to vacate a 2001 injunction that prohibits the state from banning the flag from license plates, citing a June Supreme Court ruling, according to NBC News. The Supreme Court ruled that the state of Texas could refuse to issue license plates with Confederate flags.

U.S. District Judge Jackson Kiser said he would later issue a written order addressing whether the state can recall the Virginia license plates with Confederal flags that have already been issued, according to the Washington Post.

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