9 Investigates: DMV background check system has flaws

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Channel 9 investigation discovered a flaw in a system designed to keep dangerous drivers off the road.

Before getting or renewing a license in North Carolina, the Department of Motor Vehicles checks a nationwide database that is supposed to flag any questionable records, but Eyewitness News found the information that is coming out of that system is not always accurate.

"We are going to see if you have had any citations in other states. Maybe you were convicted of drunk driving in another state, maybe reckless driving," said Marge Howell of the North Carolina DMV.

The DMV calls it a safety issue and if those issues have not been resolved the state can refuse to give you a license, but sometimes those background checks spit out the wrong information.

Harry Bowen found out when he went to renew his license at the DMV office on Arrowood Road his examiner suddenly said, "Well wait, we have got a little problem here," said Bowen.

It turns out the National Driver Register, the NDR, which complied histories of problem drivers for all 50 states flagged Bowen's account for an unpaid ticket in Massachusetts more than 25 years ago.

The problem is, the NDR had the wrong man.

"My first name, my middle name were the same as the person that Massachusetts was looking for and the birth date was the same, but the last names were different," he said.

The driver Massachusetts was looking for was actually a black man licensed in South Carolina whose last name was Brown, not Bowen. But because some of their information was the same the NDR told North Carolina Harry Bowen was a probable match.

North Carolina then put a hold on Bowen's renewal and told him he would get no driver's license until he cleared his name.

It took him eight days of phone calls and faxes to Massachusetts and South Carolina before Massachusetts finally sent the letter he took to North Carolina DMV confirming what Bowen already knew – that he was not the driver they were looking for.

"I showed them the information from Massachusetts and they just said 'Oh, OK, sorry,'" said Bowen.

In fact, North Carolina admitted it not only has no idea how many drivers are victims of DNR mismatches, but when probable matches come in it has no process in place to follow up.

"There is not a way for North Carolina to go into the National Driver Registry and check any further," said Marge Howell with the North Carolina DMV.

But at the state legislature, Sen. Malcom Graham believes there should be.

He said he will ask the DMV to pursue ways to get more accurate information on its own rather than asking drivers to do it themselves.

"Partial matches are not good enough because what it leads to is where we are today with this gentleman trying to solve a problem no making of his own," said Graham.

Bowen could not agree more.

Eyewitness News asked Bowen if he felt like he ended up having to do all the work when none of it was his fault, he responded, "I don't feel that way, in fact, that is exactly what happened."

And unless something changes, "It is an inconvenience. There are many things in life that might be an inconvenience," said Howell.

The DMV admitted it is likely to happen again.

WSOC