Investigations

On July 17, 2019, James Welburn, owner and president of American Truck Driving Academy (ATDA), a commercial driver license (CDL) training school, was indicted in the U.S. District Court, Montgomery, Alabama, for his involvement in a CDL scheme. Welburn corruptly gave cash payments to Michael Jordan, a third-party CDL examiner that operated in Columbus, Georgia.

 

On July 19, 2019, Jordan entered a plea of guilty in U.S. District Court, Montgomery, Alabama, for his role in the illegal CDL plot. Jordan was previously charged by information with conspiracy to falsify CDL examinations.

 

The indictment and information alleged that in exchange for cash payments from Welburn, Jordan falsified CDL examinations for ATDA students. The alleged falsifications included altering dates on score-sheets to conceal that Jordan conducted examinations before students were eligible to be tested; conducting more examinations than allowable on a single day; and giving ATDA students preferential treatment on the control skills portion of the exam by hand-selecting which test form to use when Jordan knew that Federal regulations required the test to be randomized.

 

DOT-OIG is conducting this investigation with assistance from Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Georgia Department of Driver Services.

 

Note: Indictments, informations, and criminal complaints are only accusations by the government. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.