CalMatters Dives Into the Deadly Relicensing Practices at DMV

While state legislators, city councils, and activists all look for ways to make California’s streets safer, a groundbreaking report by CalMatters illustrates the important role that our state’s Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) plays in keeping our roads unsafe.

In “License to Kill,” journalist Robert Lewis and a team of eight researchers scoured DMV records from counties across the state. The report’s findings are illustrated by a series of heartbreaking stories about families whose lives were destroyed after crashes–and how the people responsible are legally back on the road.

The scariest part is this statistic: “We found nearly 40% of the drivers charged with vehicular manslaughter since 2019 have a valid license.”

If you have the stomach to read more, check out the entire series at CalMatters:

• License to Kill
• Key takeaways: How the DMV allows dangerous drivers to stay on the road
• How we did it: Reporting on California’s deadly drivers

About The Author

Damien Newton

Damien is the executive director of the Southern California Streets Initiative which publishes Santa Monica Next, Streetsblog Los Angeles, Streetsblog San Francisco, Streetsblog California and Longbeachize.

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