Former California DMV worker convicted in bribery scheme gets 5 years in prison

A former California Department of Motor Vehicles employee behind a scheme to fraudulently update commercial drive test scores in exchange for bribes will serve five years in federal prison.

Shawana Denise Harris, 52, of Phelan was sentenced Thursday after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery, to commit unauthorized access of a computer and to commit identity fraud in April.

Five years was the maximum to which Harris could be sentenced. It’s unclear where she will serve her sentence; that decision falls to the federal Bureau of Prisons.

A longtime DMV employee who had the ability to update test scores for commercial driver’s license applicants in California, Harris used her position to accept bribes of at least $1,500 per applicant to make it appear that the applicant passed the test when they had not done so.

She collected approximately $277,500 from at least 185 applicants, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Harris was charged with her crimes in November 2017, following a joint California DMV, FBI, Homeland Security and U.S. Department of Transportation investigation.

This story was originally published November 4, 2022 at 10:34 AM.