Latrobe police set event to help with license plate replacement, medication disposal

Latrobe police next month will help motorists replace illegible vehicle license plates and to collect unused, expired medications.

There is no cost to take part in the event, which is slated for 9 a.m. to noon April 9 in the city municipal building, at Jefferson and Main streets.

Police Chief John Sleasman said the event is being offered in response to a defective batch of license plates issued in Pennsylvania in recent years.

“The paint and the lamination is peeling off, making them unreadable,” he said. As a result, “We’ve been overwhelmed with folks coming in to get their license plates replaced.”

The police department is partnering with the local Buchanan Tag Service.

“Bring your vehicle, bring your driver’s license and your registration card,” Sleasman said. “We’ll have all the documents. We’ll have an officer there checking the license plate.

“We just fill out the document. An officer verifies it, signs it. It will get mailed to PennDOT, and you’ll get a new license plate in the mail.”

Under state law, PennDOT will replace a vehicle license plate for free if it is verified as illegible by a law enforcement officer or by a mechanic during the vehicle’s annual safety inspection. A plate is deemed illegible when one or more numbers or letters can’t be recognized from a distance of 50 feet or if the plate shows any blistering, peeling, discoloration or loss of reflectivity.

Sleasman encouraged those who want to safely dispose of unused medications to bring them to the April 9 event.

“We cannot take liquids, needles or creams,” he noted.