(a)  The administrator of the division of motor vehicles is empowered to make available to recipients of the Purple Heart Medal up to two (2) sets of special motor vehicle registration plates indicating the owner as a recipient of the Purple Heart.

Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 31-3-48

  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Motor vehicle: means any vehicle driven or drawn by mechanical power for use on the public streets, roads, and highways;

    (2)  "Odometer" means an instrument for measuring and recording the actual distance a motor vehicle travels while in operation;

    (3)  "Person" means any individual, sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, or business trust including, but not limited to, private individuals and motor vehicle dealers, both wholesale and retail, whether the private individual or dealer is a dealer in the ordinary course of business or not;

    (4)  "Repair and replacement" means to restore to a sound working condition by replacing the instrument or any part thereof or by correcting what is inoperative;

    (5)  "Transfer" means to acquire ownership by purchase, gift, bequest, or any other means. See Rhode Island General Laws 31-23.2-2

  • person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6

(b)  The plate shall contain the words “combat wounded” across the top of the plate and shall have an insignia for the Purple Heart and be followed by the letters “P H”, followed by a numeral or numerals. The Purple Heart insignia may be reproduced on the plate in the color purple.

(c)  Upon the death of the holder of any Purple Heart plates, the plates shall be transferred to his or her surviving spouse for the spouse’s lifetime until he or she remarries.

(d)  The applicant is not required to pay a registration fee or service charge for the plates.

(e)  Upon the death of the holder of any Purple Heart plates, if there is no surviving spouse, a family member of the recipient may retain one of the special motor vehicle registration plates in his or her own keeping, provided he or she does not display the plate upon any motor vehicle or any other form of transportation owned or operated by the family member. The other Purple Heart plate must be returned to the division of motor vehicles.

(f)  Any violation of the provisions of subsection (e) of this section shall be deemed a civil violation, and any person displaying a special motor vehicle registration plate upon any vehicle shall, upon conviction, be fined five hundred dollars ($500) for each offense. Each day in which the special motor vehicle registration plate is displayed upon any vehicle shall be a separate offense punishable by the same penalty.

History of Section.
P.L. 1987, ch. 53, § 1; P.L. 1987, ch. 345, § 2; P.L. 1989, ch. 482, § 1; P.L. 1990, ch. 186, § 1; P.L. 1994, ch. 188, § 1; P.L. 2000, ch. 109, § 56; P.L. 2002, ch. 254, § 1; P.L. 2015, ch. 137, § 1; P.L. 2015, ch. 149, § 1; P.L. 2022, ch. 334, § 1, effective June 29, 2022; P.L. 2022, ch. 335, § 1, effective June 29, 2022.