LOS ANGELES − The California Department of Motor Vehicles issued an apology Thursday for printing a personalized license plate that appeared to mock the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, though the family of the car owner has disputed that interpretation.
A photo of the license plate reading “LOLOCT7” was published by the X account StopAntisemitism which claimed the license plate, affixed to a Tesla Cybertruck, was photographed at a major intersection in Culver City near Los Angeles.
The account demanded the California DMV recall the plates saying it “celebrates the October 7th terrorist attack” and calling it a “vile mockery.”
The son of the car’s owner told ABC affiliate KABC Friday that the account was misinterpreting a Tagalog word on the license plate.
The son, who the station did not identify, said that the plate should be read as “LOLO-CT-7,” referencing the Tagalog word for grandfather, the model of the car and the number of grandchildren the owner has. The son told the station that the explanation was given to the DMV when the application for the license plate was submitted.
California DMV issues apology over license plate
The California DMV said in a statement posted to X that it is recalling the plates and that it would review its personalized license plate review.
“We sincerely apologize that these personalized plates were not properly rejected during our review process,” the statement read.
The car owner’s son told KABC that the incident is a “total big misunderstanding.”
“We have great empathy for anyone who has experienced any hatred,” the son told the station. “We would really appreciate, in turn, for anyone that’s seeing this or hearing this to have any empathy toward our family because we had no ill intent for anything.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: CA DMV apologizes for license plate, family calls it ‘misunderstanding’