California’s DMV director says possible criminal investigation is underway related to driver’s license test issues
SACRAMENTO, Calif. —
The director of the California Department of Motor Vehicles has told state lawmakers a potential criminal investigation is underway after the agency found irregularities with 11,000 driver’s license tests.
The DMV on Monday provided KCRA 3 a copy of a letter the agency’s director, Steve Gordon, sent State Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Dave Cortese late last week. Cortese, a Democrat, and the committee’s Republican Vice Chairman Senator Tony Strickland had been criticizing the agency for failing to answer questions about the driver’s test issues.
11,000 drivers were notified earlier this month that they needed to retake their driver’s license test within 30 days after the agency said it found irregularities that could be the result of cheating.
“The notices were not issued randomly or based on a single data point but instead followed investigative review of information indicating that the associated knowledge examination may have been compromised,” Gordon wrote in his letter to Cortese.
“Because these matters involve ongoing investigations with potential criminal implications, DMV cannot disclose the specific investigative techniques, evidentiary thresholds, or analytical methodologies used to identify affected individuals,” Gordon wrote. “Public disclosure of those details would risk compromising ongoing investigations, undermining future enforcement efforts, and enabling individuals to circumvent the Department’s fraud detection processes. Several matters have been referred for prosecution, and DMV will continue to make additional referrals where appropriate.”
Gordon noted in 2017 the DMV identified 3,600 individuals received a driver’s license without passing the required tests, which was at the center of an investigation that resulted in the indictment of 14 people for various felonies.
“While the facts and circumstances of each investigation differ, these actions reflect DMV’s longstanding responsibility to ensure that every licensed driver has met California’s statutory licensing requirements,” Gordon wrote. “DMV remains committed to protecting both the integrity of California’s driver licensing system and the fairness of its investigative processes.”
A spokesman for the DMV would not say which law enforcement agencies are involved. A spokesperson for Attorney General Rob Bonta could not say as of Monday if the DMV referred any of the cases to the California Department of Justice.
Strickland released the following statement about Gordon’s letter on Monday night:
“I appreciate the DMV’s response and its commitment to protecting the integrity of the driver’s licensing process. However, these are serious and concerning allegations that warrant additional scrutiny. If these individuals took the written exam in person, were they properly monitored, and if so, why weren’t these issues identified at the time? If the exams were taken online, what safeguards were in place to prevent misconduct?
“Californians deserve clear answers. When a state agency alleges widespread cheating involving thousands of drivers, it has a responsibility to explain how those conclusions were reached and what actions will be taken to protect the integrity of the testing process going forward, and to ensure these problems don’t happen again.”
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