How can the DMV refuse to issue me my license with a "Warrant Block"when the issue has nothing to do with me?

How can the DMV refuse to issue me my license woth a "Warrant Block"when the issue has nothing to do with me?

This incident happened to me this past week and I would appreciate your reply as to how or if this is legal or ethical. I was put out time, money and felt humiliated in a crowded DMV office.

I feel that this violates my civil rights as the software used to issue a " Warrant Block" to find me guilty of something because my name and information are merely similar to someone else and I had to prove that it wasn't me!! This is America, even after 911, and we should still be innocent until PROVEN guilty, even at the DMV.







Last Friday I went to the local DMV to renew my Driver's License and license plates. I was informed by the Bureau employee that he was unable to process my Driver's License because of an outstanding warrant from New York State. It's been nearly 20 years since I visited New York State and while I was there I was never issued a citation for anything. I recieved a printout from the BMV employee with this brief message:



My name Unable to proceed with application, please contact:

NY (518)474-0774 48XXXXX77

Contact 614-752-7600 for additional blocking information.



I was instructed by the Bereau employee to contact New York first, and when the issue was resolved with them to contact the other phone number wich was an Ohio DMV number. After hours on the phone (these phone calls were not to toll free numbers mind you) going through the menus on the New York number I finally connected with a human being who asked for the case number and asked if my name was Miguel and asked if I lived in a town (I forget what she said but I think it was Elmyra). I answered "No, I'm Michwill from Smalltown, Ohio". I then asked her how I could resolve this matter as the warrant was not for me, and she proceeded to explain that I needed to Fax a letter to 518- 474 -6208 with my name, address, date of birth, last four digits of my Social Security #, the reference # and a copy of my current driver's license.



I then tried to call the Ohio number off and on for quite some time... all l that I got was a busy signal. At this point I was frustrated so I got on the Ohio DMV's web site and found a general information phone number (614-752-7500) and recieved help from a gentleman. After a bit of time on the phone with him he informed me that the problem would be resolved in 24 hours. The following Monday I went back to the local DMV where I learned that the problem still was not resolved. An employee at the local DMV then called Columbus and quickly resolved the issue.



I do not wish to criticize the Ohio or New York employees, because I feel that they did their jobs and were instramental in resolving this issue. My problem is that (as explained to me by the employee of the local DMV) the software used to genrate this "warrant block " doesn't necessarily use 'exact' information, it uses information that only needs to be 'close'. To my way of thinking, this is wrong. I was considered guilty and had to prove my innocence. This system is flawed. This is an abuse of a resource that should be used in a more ethical manner. Somehow I don't think I'm the only one to fall through this crack. I realize that law enforcement needs certain tools to catch the bad guys, but it shouldn't be at the expese of innocent people. Why do driver's licenses have a user specific number on it and a photo if they aren't going to be used to identify specific individuals. The same goes for our Social Security Numbers. They weren't intended to be used as an ID but the fact is for years that's exactly what they were used for. If states like Ohio are going to share information with other states,why not share enough information to make a positive ID instead of forcing people to prove their innocence? Why isn't law enforcement forced to prove guilt instead?How can the DMV refuse to issue me my license with a "Warrant Block"when the issue has nothing to do with me?
"To err is human, to really screw up, you need a computer"



The problem is two fold, one is the sheer mass of data on the DMV computers in both your very populated states. The other is privacy concerns and laws on the federal and state level. It has been suggested more than once that a national ID system be put in place. But the fear of the government having all that information about you keeps such a program off the books. So, foul ups like yours continue to plague us all. Some years ago I was doing a background check on a police applicant. I got a four page rap sheet on the guy out of Chicago. He'd committed every crime from petty theft to attempted murder. Since I knew the applicant personally, I was pretty sure there was an error. Similar name, same birth month and year, and a SSN that was just one number different. Since my query was close to this, the computer sent it.



you are not alone. . .