TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A commercial truck driver who is charged with killing three people in a deadly crash in Florida in August had failed a commercial driver’s license test 10 times in the span of two months in 2023 in Washington state, before he was ultimately issued a license, according to a senior official in the Florida Attorney General’s Office.<\/p>\n
Florida is using the case of Harjinder Singh<\/a>, who is accused of being in the country illegally<\/a>, to urge the nation’s highest court to permanently bar some states from issuing commercial driver’s licenses or CDLs to people who are not U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents. <\/p>\n In a separate case, another semitruck driver accused of being in the country illegally was charged with the killings of three people in a crash on a southern California freeway<\/a> this week, renewing federal officials’ criticisms<\/a> of immigrant drivers and concerns about who should be able to obtain CDLs.<\/p>\n Here’s what to know.<\/p>\n Florida’s investigation of Harjinder Singh has revealed that the trucker failed a written test to receive a CDL in Washington state 10 times between March 10, 2023, and April 5, 2023, a senior official for Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier who was briefed on the investigation told The Associated Press. The official is not authorized to comment publicly about an ongoing investigation and provided the information on the condition of not being identified.<\/p>\n Singh, who is from India, lived in California and was originally issued a CDL in Washington before California also issued him one. He was carrying a valid California CDL at the time of the crash, according to court filings.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Washington\u2019s Department of Licensing said no one was immediately able to respond to questions Friday. In California, all commercial truck drivers must pass a written test but may be allowed to skip the driving test if they have an out-of-state license with equivalent classification, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicle\u2019s website. State officials didn\u2019t immediately respond to requests for more information.<\/p>\n He is accused of attempting an illegal U-turn from the northbound lanes of Florida\u2019s Turnpike near Fort Pierce on Aug. 12. A minivan that was behind Singh\u2019s big rig couldn\u2019t stop and crashed into the truck, killing its driver and two passengers. Singh and a passenger in the truck were not injured.<\/p>\n Singh is currently being held without bond in the St. Lucie County Jail, not far from where the crash occurred. His next court date is scheduled for Nov. 13.<\/p>\n Florida is now petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to take up its case against the states of California and Washington, and urging the high court to bar states from issuing CDLs to people who are in the country illegally. <\/p>\n Florida’s petition filed this month argues the Western states have demonstrated \u201copen defiance of federal immigration laws” and a failure to enforce public safety, which Florida is urging the court to declare a \u201cpublic nuisance.” That’s a type of legal claim that’s typically used to address local concerns<\/a> like blighted homes, illegal drug-dealing or dangerous animals, but has also been directed at pharmacies for their role in the opioid crisis<\/a>.<\/p>\n If the court accepts the case, Florida officials hope it could lead to a new legal precedent for states’ abilities to issue CDLs to people who are not citizens or legal permanent residents. A ruling could also have a downstream effect on how or if conventional driver’s licenses are issued to immigrants, the senior Florida official said.<\/p>\n In a separate case, Jashanpreet Singh was arrested and jailed after Tuesday\u2019s eight-vehicle crash in Ontario, California, that killed three people and left four others injured. <\/p>\n Singh, who also is from India, is accused of being under the influence of drugs and causing the fiery crash. According to the California Highway Patrol, westbound traffic on Interstate 10 near San Bernardino had slowed Tuesday afternoon when a tractor-trailer failed to stop, struck other vehicles and caused a chain-reaction crash.<\/p>\n Singh, of Yuba City, entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 across the southern border, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said Thursday in a post on X.<\/p>\n