Governor Rell Announces Actions Taken to

Address Questions About Driver’s Licenses

            Governor M. Jodi Rell today made it clear that the state has been actively investigating the improper handling of Connecticut driver’s licenses for nearly 18 months and announced a series of actions to continue safeguarding the integrity of licenses and identity documents.

            Working in conjunction with the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney, the Connecticut State Police and the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), a coordinated investigation has been underway since July 2003 and has already resulted in the arrests of one state employee (Channie Jamison) and four private citizens for allegedly selling and receiving fraudulent licenses, Governor Rell said. A second state employee (Venita Bines) has been placed on suspension and at least two other state employees continue to be under investigation. Improperly issued licenses have been revoked.

            In addition, comprehensive inspections have been and continue to be conducted on all of the work performed by the state employees in question and a system has been in place for some time to audit the work of all driver’s license examiners in the DMV.

            “This is an extremely serious situation,” Governor Rell said. “We take any allegation of fraud or wrongdoing seriously and investigate it immediately.

            “Not only are we addressing this possible wrongdoing in the DMV, we are making sure that any improperly issued licenses are recovered and the people who had them are identified and arrested,” the Governor said. “All information we gather is being shared with the appropriate authorities.

            “Thousands of records are being searched by hand to ensure thoroughness,” Governor Rell said. “State police have been a part of this investigation from the beginning and are working with the Chief State’s Attorney’s office. We’re also working with the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Social Security Administration and other federal agencies.”

            Jamison of South Norwalk, a DMV examiner specialist, is no longer in state service. She was arrested August 25 and is charged with second-degree forgery, conspiracy to commit second-degree forgery, receiving a bribe, conspiracy to receive a bribe, giving a false statement, and conspiracy to give a false statement. Her case is pending.

            Bines of Bridgeport, a DMV examiner, was suspended August 28. She has not yet been charged with any criminal wrongdoing.

            “This investigation has been under way for some time, as evidenced by the arrest made in August. It is continuing with the goal of identifying all involved in any wrongdoing, whether in issuing or obtaining fraudulent documents,” said Chief State’s Attorney Christopher L. Morano. “The Office of the Chief State’s Attorney is working with the Connecticut State Police to complete the investigation as expeditiously as possible. We are committed to working with the Governor and all other appropriate agencies to assure the integrity of the licensing process.”

            Public Safety Commissioner Leonard C. Boyle said, “The State Police are actively involved in investigations which they are working cooperatively with the DMV. Obviously, because these matters are the subject of ongoing investigations, we have made no public comment until now nor we do intend to comment further.”

            “DMV takes seriously any breach of security and has been working diligently to eliminate fraud on any level in our organization,” DMV Commissioner Gary J. DeFilippo said.

            In an effort to bolster licensing security efforts Governor Rell has directed Commissioner DeFilippo to:

n Establish a Document Integrity Unit to ensure that employees and supervisors involved in issuing licenses, identity cards and vehicle registrations adhere to the highest standards. The unit, which will report directly to the Commissioner, will continuously monitor and enforce procedures for issuing these documents. Tom Ruby, an attorney with homeland security experience, will head the new unit.

n Request a performance audit by the Auditors of Public Accounts, to include an assessment of current practices and recommendations for improvements.

n Assign two additional State Police officers to DMV to focus exclusively on investigating any allegations of licensing, identity or registration fraud.

n Secure the cooperation of federal authorities including the Secret Service, which has indicated it is available to assist in this investigation if needed.

            “Changes are needed at the DMV to ensure accountability and security in all facets of licensing procedures,” Governor Rell said. “The people of Connecticut expect and demand nothing less, and I will not settle for anything less. The steps we have taken and these new measures continue to move us in the right direction. Make no mistake: We will stay focused on this issue to guarantee that our security is not threatened by anyone.”