PHOENIX - An anti-abortion group has won a long legal fight to force Arizona to issue "choose life" license plates, and the proposed new plates could be available to the group's members within several months.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday left in place a January ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of the Arizona Life Coalition.

With the case resolved, the state license plate commission "will have to meet" to reconsider the application, said Motor Vehicle Division spokeswoman Cydney DeModica. She said she did not immediately know when that would happen.

"Special organization plates" such as the "Choose Life" plate are distributed to individuals through the requesting organization and typically go to that group's members and not the general public, DeModica said.

The Arizona Life Coalition has sought the special plates for six years, said Peter Gentala, a lawyer for the coalition.

Under state law, once an application for a special organization plate is approved by the commission, the applicant then must either submit 200 requests for the plate or provide upfront money for the state to design and produce the plate.

State law then gives the Motor Vehicle Division a year to issue the plate, DeModica said, producing a special organization plate typically only takes several months. The plates are then sold for an additional fee, and the special organization gets some of that money.

The plate envisioned by supporters would have drawings of the faces of two smiling children in an overall design based on Arizona's regular plate. The "choose life" slogan would appear twice.

While the case has been portrayed as being centered on the abortion issue, Gentala said the groups that belong to the coalition also are speaking of adoption and other concerns.

The commission's members did not explain the panel's decision to deny the application, but a spokeswoman for Gov. Janet Napolitano later said the proposed plate involved a "very contentious and divisive issue that is not appropriate for a license plate."

The 9th Circuit said the state commission on license plates violated the group's constitutional right to free speech by turning down its application.

Before largely suspending its operations because of the court case, the commission had approved numerous special plates for organizations, including the University of Phoenix, the Arizona Historical Society and the Fraternal Order of Police.

Some groups in recent years have bypassed the commission and received authorization for special plates from the Legislature.

Special plates approved by the Legislature this year include those for the Phoenix Suns and Gold Star families. Those plates are available to anybody, not just the members of the sponsoring groups.

Other states offering "Choose Life" plates include South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee.

The case is Stanton v. Arizona Life Coalition, 07-1366.

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U.S. Supreme Court: http://www.supremecourtus.gov/