A New York woman has described an 18-year nightmare in which she was repeatedly penalised for traffic fines and criminal records belonging to another person with the same name and birthdate. Lisa Selin Davis, now in her 40s, first discovered the mix-up in 1998 when she tried to rent a car at West Palm Beach airport and was told her licence was suspended.
Over the years, Davis received numerous tickets for violations she did not commit, including a busted headlight in the Bronx and a mobile phone driving offence. Each time, she had to plead guilty and pay fines to restore her licence, then attempt to repeal the guilty plea. Her voter registration was also affected, as the other Lisa S Davis had re-registered in the Bronx.
In 2013, after her licence was suspended again, the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) finally explained that there was another Lisa S Davis with the same birthdate in New York City, and their records had become crossed. Davis was told she was not a victim of identity theft but of a bureaucratic error. She obtained the other woman's middle name from the DMV and found her on Facebook.
When Davis tracked down the other woman, a different story emerged. The other Lisa S Davis was also unaware of the confusion and had been similarly affected. The two women met and resolved to work together to clear their records. Davis eventually had her name legally changed to Lisa Selin Davis to prevent further mix-ups.
The case highlights flaws in the DMV and police systems, which rely on name and birthdate rather than more unique identifiers. Davis hopes her story will encourage reforms to prevent similar ordeals for others.
