FRANKFORT, Ky. (WDRB) — A Franklin Circuit Court judge is weighing whether to force the state to release records tied to an alleged driver’s license fraud scheme that Kentucky officials say involves a “vulnerable immigrant community.”
WDRB News is asking the court to order the release of roughly 2,000 documents the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet withheld in response to an open records request, as the state revokes licenses flagged in the probe.
During a hearing this week, Judge Thomas Wingate indicated there’s a path to release at least some information with redactions.
“They’re going to produce something,” Wingate said, suggesting blacking out the most sensitive details could protect the investigation while honoring the public’s right to know. He later noted, “There’s 1,546 people that violated the law … wouldn’t it be acceptable to just mark out their names on these letters?”
Governor stays tight-lipped on investigation
At an event Thursday celebrating a new Speed Engineering building at the University of Louisville, Gov. Andy Beshear declined to discuss specifics.
When asked whether Kentucky State Police are working with federal immigration authorities to track down people who received fraudulent licenses, Beshear said officials had asked him not to release facts tied to the active investigation.
“A lot of the assumptions driving both some of the questions and so-called facts being put out there may not prove to be accurate,” the governor said.
Beshear has not publicly confirmed the investigation involves immigrants. But newly-obtained court records do: a KYTC attorney wrote, “The individuals who received the licenses at issue are, in large part, part of a vulnerable immigrant community.”
In court, KYTC attorney Stewart Burch argued releasing names now “would jeopardize the investigation.”
WDRB fights for withheld records
WDRB is seeking about 2,000 documents the state withheld in full, not just the names of license holders. First Amendment attorney Michael Leigh, who is representing WDRB, argued the state cannot shield broad categories of records simply by invoking an ongoing investigation.
“The proposition that if you attach a law enforcement investigation to a record, it automatically can be withheld is absolutely, on its face, not true,” Leigh said.
Whistleblower sparks statewide scrutiny
Calls for transparency intensified after former licensing clerk Melissa Moorman told WDRB she reported suspected fraud at Louisville’s Nia Center branch and was later fired. Moorman has filed a whistleblower lawsuit.
“The employees were being paid under the table. I immediately let my supervisor know about it,” Moorman said, adding she later learned her ID was being misused and that the scheme “involved undocumented workers.”
Following WDRB’s reporting, State Auditor Allison Ball requested information from the governor’s office. She said she was rebuffed with a letter that began, “No law requires my office to respond.”
Ball said her next statewide audit — beginning this fall — will include a review of the licenses at issue and KYTC safeguards.
“How did this happen to begin with? You need safeguards to prevent this from happening,” Ball said. “Do you have authorities in place reviewing things? That will be incorporated into our audit of KYTC.”
What’s next
Beshear said multiple agencies — including the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Kentucky State Police — are involved and warned that releasing certain details now could help “the bad guys get away.”
“I’m going to make sure I put that investigation first — and the arrests and incarcerations that will follow,” Beshear said.
Wingate is now considering whether to order the state to release records with redactions, a decision that could take some of the disclosure out of the governor’s hands while protecting ongoing investigative work.
Previous Coverage:
Kentucky auditor demands response from governor on immigrant driver's license fraud claims
Lawmakers to subpoena records after claim illegal immigrants purchased Ky. driver's licenses
Former clerk says illegal immigrants paid $200 'under the table' for Ky. driver’s licenses
Kentucky withholds records of fraud investigation after drivers obtain licenses without a test
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