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Investigations

Date

South Carolina Third Party Tester Convicted for Illegally Administering Commercial Drivers License Tests

On August 31, 2015, Thomas Lindsey pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court, Greenville, South Carolina, to false statements related to the unauthorized administering of commercial driver's license (CDL) tests.

Lindsey was approved by the State of South Carolina as a third party tester, solely for the administration of CDL testing to employees of the North Spartanburg Fire Department (NSFD). However, he administered CDL testing to drivers who were not employed by the NSFD. Additionally, he did not require all drivers to perform vehicle pre-trip inspections, basic controls or road tests, and utilized unapproved locations to conduct testing. Lindsey collected fees from each individual to whom he administered the unauthorized CDL tests, and instructed drivers to deliver fraudulently completed skills test forms to various SC Department of Motor Vehicles locations.

We conducted this investigation with assistance from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles - Office of Inspector General.