California prosecutors say the state Department of Motor Vehicles lets deadly drivers keep their licenses with little review. Prosecutors in Placer County tried to get DMV files on Kostas Linardos, who faces felony vehicular manslaughter. In November 2022, police say he hit a stopped sedan at high speed and killed a 23-month-old. Court records say he has at least 16 violations and several prior crashes. Yet the DMV renewed his driver's license. In court, a DMV lawyer admitted the agency has no record of investigating Linardos. CalMatters data also shows the DMV investigates only a small share of drivers involved in serious crashes. Linardo's attorney declined to comment due to the ongoing criminal case.
