The decades-long scourge of that all-too-earwormy "1-877-KARS4KIDS" jingle is thankfully over, or almost over, for Californians at least, as a court has ruled the ads must stop running due to false advertising.

An Orange County judge ruled this week that Kars4Kids, a semi-fake charity associated with an Orthodox Jewish organization, Oorah, based in New Jersey, must cease advertising in California within 30 days. As NBC Bay Area reports, the case, which dates back to 2021 and somehow took five years to decide, and stems from one man, Bruce Puterbaugh, suing the charity over a Volvo he donated, valued at $250, which he believed was going to help underprivileged childen in California.

The ads, which have been running for almost two decades, suggest that donations go to help needy kids across the US, but in reality, the revenue from donated vehicles goes primarily to fund the programs of Oorah, including buying a building in Israel to expand its presence there, and funding a summer camp and gap-year trips to Israel for 17- and 18-year-olds from the tri-state (NJ, NY, and CT) area.

"When a charity generates millions annually through a ‘jingle’ that conceals its primary religious and geographic focus, it creates an unfair playing field for local California charities that are honest about their missions," wrote Judge Gassia Apkarian in her ruling.

The ruling ads that if the TV advertisements continue, they must contain "an express, audible disclosure of its religious affiliation and the geographic location of its primary beneficiaries and the age of the beneficiaries, specifying whether they aim for children or families, or both."

Kars4Kids, based in Lakewood, New Jersey, says they are seeking a stay of the ruling pending an appeal, as the New York Times reports. "We believe this decision is deeply flawed, ignores the facts and misapplies the law," the organization said in a statement. "It’s well known that we are a Jewish organization and our website makes it abundantly clear."

They added that their programs help "hundreds" of children in California, and elsewhere, with "youth development, mentoring and educational programs."

In the ruling, Judge Apkarian that the only thing the charity had funded in California was a "promotional giveaway of Kars4Kids-branded backpacks."

As the Times notes, during the trial, Judge Apkarian claimed that she had never seen one of the ads or heard the infernal jingle until it was played for her in the courtroom, to which the plaintiff's attorney asked, "Do you not have a television?"

Judge Apkarian cited a statement from Kars4Kids' own chief operating officers, Esti Landau, saying that she admitted that the charity was a specifically religious one, which is not disclosed in the ads — and the depiction of prepubescent children, she noted, was also misleading, given that Oorah's programs mostly serve older teens.

Landau said that the programs "help Jewish children and their families and provide them with the support they need throughout their life."

The court found that 60% of Kars4Kids revenue (around $45M per year) flows to Oorah, while another 36% goes to pay for administration and buying ad time.

As KPIX reports, Puterbaugh, the plaintiff, testified at trial that he was not computer savvy, and so when he had a broken-down car to get rid of, he remembered the jingle and dialed the phone number. He said that he felt "taken advantage of" after learning the organization's true mission.

The ruling also calls for $250 to be paid in restitution back to Puterbaugh.

"This ruling reinforces a fundamental principle: charitable organizations cannot mislead the public to create one impression while concealing material facts from the donating public,” said Neal Roberts, one of Puterbaugh's lawyers, in a statement.