January 22, 2006

Citizens and Government Officials of the State of Indiana,

It has been one very long year for me. In 2005, I had a health-changing experience that may, perhaps, be with me for the rest of my life and I have Joel Silverman, Commissioner of the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles, to blame. I was only comforted this year by the fact that others in Indiana have come to realize that Joel Silverman is a very arrogant, condescending, and ruthless man.

During 2005, Silverman made plans to close a number of BMV offices and he did. While that is probably good for the state budget, I read many reports on the Internet that he met with the members of the affected communities out of legal obligation, but treated the citizens with complete disrespect. Reportedly, Senator Charlie Brown even called for Silverman's resignation in late August 2005. Perhaps what is worse is that Silverman made the decision and then announced that decision days after the 2005 legislature adjourned.

While axing the jobs of many employees, Silverman reportedly hired 24 people that used to work for him at Galyans. This has been called into question and I can certainly see why many would be angry by the reports that Silverman fired some BMV employees, only to replace them with his friends.

I was particularly curious about the call for Silverman's resignation by Senator Brown. I did not hear all of the details, but from what I read Mr. Silverman mistreated the citizens in Senator Brown's jurisdiction in a similar fashion as he has treated me, using condescending words and demonstrating his arrogance.

I want to bring to the attention of the good people of the State of Indiana yet another black mark in the short career of Joel Silverman.

Back in 2001, Indiana issued at least three ID cards to at least two different people in Indiana which were associated with my Social Security Number. When I discovered this just a few days after those ID cards were used to get credit in my name, I reported it to the Indiana State Police. The police were very helpful in tracking down at least one of the individuals. I made the assumption that the incorrect records would be fixed. That was, unfortunately, a faulty assumption.

In February 2005 when I tried to renew my North Carolina driver's license, I discovered that Indiana had reported to the National Driver Register in Washington, D.C. that my license had been suspended in Indiana. The truth is that I have never lived in nor ever had an Indiana Driver's license. I understand how this kind of error can happen, but when I contacted the Indiana BMV, you can guess that they were not terribly helpful. I do not necessarily place blame on the BMV for the not fixing the records several years ago, but failure to act when presented with information directly several years later is gross negligence.

After literally spending several months trying to address the issue, I decided to call Silverman directly on the phone on June 8, 2005. It was then that I learned what kind of ass he is. He refused to help me, though he was aware of my situation. I was left with only one option by the folks in the lower ranks. They literally told me, "you need to get a court order."

Over the past year, I contacted many people within the BMV. I contacted the Governor's office. I contacted the prosecutor's office in Hamilton County. I contacted the National Driver Register. I contacted the DMV in North Carolina. It seems that nobody is willing or, if they are willing, they're powerless to do anything. The folks under Silverman apparently cannot do anything to correct the problem and Silverman sits as the gatekeeper refusing to fix this very serious issue.

As a consequence, I had some heart problems during 2005. While just sitting at my desk, my heart rate would race at 117 beats per minute. I never had that problem before and I can relate it directly to this issue: every time I pick up the phone to work on this issue, my stress level just goes through the roof. What's more, I have taken at least two full weeks away from work during 2005 to address this problem.

While the Indiana State Police know that the BMV records are wrong and while the Indiana BMV knows the records are wrong (i.e., the records bearing my Social Security Number do not belong to me), as of January 5, 2006 the records still remain on file and are published for the entire country to see. Not only is Silverman's BMV knowingly publishing false information and putting me under significant undue stress, they are also putting me at risk of being arrested for "driving with a suspended driver's license". I was told by one person in the BMV legal department that, for the rest of my life, I should always carry a piece of paper they mailed to me that said that I do not appear to be the person they have on file so that I can avoid being arrested and taken to jail. How would you like that bearing down on your shoulders?

Well, I am very tired of waiting for nothing to get done. While it saddens me to think that it has to go this far, I have decided to take this matter to Federal court. It will be quite expensive, but I am more than confident that I will win the court case: after all, I have ample evidence and support from so many people. I will finally get that court order that the BMV legal department wanted, but it will not be without significant cost to the State of Indiana.

Best Regards,

Paul E. Jones

Apex, North Carolina