Posted on 02/05/2005 8:59:51 PM PST by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO (AP) - The terrorist believed to have flown a hijacked airliner into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001, obtained a California driver's license without providing the required Social Security number for identification, officials are acknowledging for the first time.
Nawaf Alhazmi then used that license when he registered for the flight training that enabled him to pilot the doomed airliner.
Alhazmi used a loophole, since closed, in California law that allowed hundreds of thousands of foreign drivers without Social Security numbers to use a generic number in its place. Even some foreign citizens with Social Security numbers skirted the identity check required of U.S. citizens.
Although the process changed a year ago, some of the drivers still have their original licenses. Only this fall, when their licenses come up for renewal, will the Department of Motor Vehicles run identity checks on the last of the drivers who used the loophole.
California was one of the first states to require that Social Security numbers be verified as part of a routine identification check when driver's licenses were issued. But a 1994 court decision required the state to also give driver's licenses to qualified applicants, such as foreign students, who had no Social Security number. Those forms were processed with the bypass code.
Alhazmi used his own name and presented other identification to get his license. But a Social Security number is the nation's standard identification number; if Alhazmi had used one for his license, he might have been easier for authorities to track.
The fact that Alhazmi and other 9/11 terrorists obtained driver's licenses has been a key point in arguments against efforts in some states to allow illegal immigrants to get licenses. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed such a bill last year from the California Legislature, saying it didn't provide adequate security protection.
DMV officials closed the loophole after the attacks, prodded in part by former investigator Paul Satkowski, a whistle-blower who says he suffered retaliation from DMV officials based in part on his frequent and sometimes public warnings about driver's license security flaws.
While it was commonly known after 9/11 that Alhazmi had a California driver's license, it has not previously been reported in any detail that he obtained it using a bypass number also used by thousands of other foreign citizens, DMV spokesman Bill Branch said.
From December 2000 through February 2002, the department issued more than 184,000 licenses using the bypass code.
"My hair is getting gray from thinking about this stat," Satkowski wrote in a March 6, 2002, e-mail to department Deputy Director John McClellan. "In my opinion, that is a lot of persons welcomed into this state on foreign student visas where the Social Security numbers are not verified!"
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On the Net:
California Department of Motor Vehicles: http://www.dmv.ca.gov
Shocking!
A concept that has been fought for years.
Yes, but since that terrorist had a license, he could get car insurance. On top of that we knew who he was and that protected us from danger.
Thanks for the report Norm. This will be a blissful red-letter report for the OBL.
all the more reason to not give illegals a license. But of course there are other states that they can get a license legally right now........
Those two bastards were living around 6 miles from me.
They were also in the 2000 San Diego phone book
Bump.
Immigration control and the second amendment will handle 95% of terrorism.
If some asswipe muslim whack-job twitches, and then gets 4-8 .40 cal Corbon rounds to the cranium before he can fart, then that would help a great deal, IMO.
They have been sitting on this for three years!
If so, that it begs the follow up question: Republican or democrat?
so he got one for free....
for a few hundred you can get real or fake ones from DMV employees or counterfeiters
In Oregon you have to give a number, but DMV does not check that it is a legit number. You could use 123-45-6789 and it would go through the system w/o a hitch. Idiot liberals are HAPPY that they refused the 300K grant from the Fed's to NOT be able to connect to the federal system to check the legitimacy of the information given. Oregon is now a hot-spot for Illegals of all types to come in and get drivers licenses.
God as my witness, there are days I hate living in Oregon. I hate being associated with such complete MORONS!!!
When exactly did that subhuman get the license? I suspect it was before Bush was sworn in, since they didn't mention at least the year...
Only 5 days left to mail in your petitions.
You can download more petitions
http://www.saveourlicense.com
They must be postmarked by 2/10/2005!
WE NEED EVERYONE'S HELP!
More fuel for the cause... Gil Cedillo is a goner!
Glad we finally left.
We didn't call it as Jackass County, Trashland, Muddleford, Central Punt, & Jackassville for nothing!
ping
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