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There are expert master forgers, and then there's the guy who drew his own New York vehicle inspection and registration documents using crayon. On Friday, November 21, New York State Police posted a picture on Facebook of a car's windshield displaying stickers that had clearly been drawn by hand using a mix of marker pens and crayon. "As a friendly reminder," the Facebook post said, "arts and crafts supplies do not count as valid documentation".
The vehicle, driven by 50-year-old Gregory T. Cawley, was stopped by a state trooper due to suspected switched plates. The handmade documentation just added to the list of violations he received, including using incorrect license plates, driving without a valid license, operating an unregistered vehicle, and not having a valid inspection. He was also charged with not having a left-side mirror and exhaust system violations. The car was immediately taken off the road by the police.
Switched plates are illegal, like ghost plates used by drivers to avoid toll charges. Driving a car with incorrect plates can result in a fine of up to $200. Failure to display an inspection ticket can land you with a fine of $100, although state surcharges can almost double that figure. The penalty for driving an unregistered vehicle can be as much as $300, and can result in jail time for repeat offenders.
New York requires drivers to display registration and inspection stickers
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Obviously, Cawley's handiwork was never intended to be seen by a police officer at close range. The subterfuge was presumably meant to suffice at a distance. But given the number of crimes taking place here, it's safe to say that the perpetrator probably wasn't too bothered about playing by the rules. Remarkably, he isn't the first person to be caught with fake stickers. In 2023, a woman was charged with "possession of a forged instrument" after troopers spotted a hand-drawn, poorly-spelled inspection sticker on her car. A similar forgery charge was reported in 2022. In this case, a man had created his own inspection sticker using black pen and a Post-it note. There have even been reports of dummy inspection stickers used to scam second-hand car buyers.
In New York state, drivers must have a valid registration and are required to have a safety inspection carried out once a year. Vehicles over two years old usually also need to undergo an emissions test. Drivers need to display both registration and inspection stickers on the windshield and keep a copy of the paper registration certificate in their vehicle. While this is mandatory in New York, some states don't require regular car inspections. You aren't required to get one in Alaska, Iowa, or Kentucky, for example, except in special circumstances like out-of-state vehicles or if you've built your car yourself.
New York State inspection stickers were updated in 2023. The new design includes a QR code to make it more difficult for people to defraud the system. For Gregory T. Cawley, a missing QR code really was only a tiny part of the problem.
