Lawsuit: DMV groping known

The parents of one victim alerted the Department of Motor Vehicles the day after the alleged Sept. 23, 2004 molestation but Calvin Cat, 37, continued administering tests long into October, according to civil attorney Don Galine.

The parents spoke with two women at the DMV who said the alleged groping must have been a misunderstanding, said paralegal Maureen Backman of Galine's office.

Galine represents four of the 14 girls listed in a criminal complaint against Cat. Two of the girls claim Cat touched them inappropriately on Oct. 7 and Oct. 21. The parents of the Oct. 21 victim phoned DMV officials who said the behavior was inappropriate, Galine said. The parents also reportedly sent a letter.

A fourth victim alleges an Aug. 4 incident but came forward at the end of the case.

The four girls were subpoenaed by DMV to testify at a personnel hearing later this month. Cat reportedly wants his job back and DMV wants to use the fondling accusations as grounds to deny the appeal of his November termination, Galine said.

DMV spokesman Bill Branch could not confirm either claims by the end of Monday but said the agency is not allowed to comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit wants damages for medical expenses, general damages and emotional distress. The suit also demands the agency change its testing policy to require adult chaperones, send employees to sexual harassment seminars and post notice that the agency and Cat have been found to have committed sex-based harassment.

Currently, the DMV does not allow any non-employee to ride with the examiner and the person taking the test. Parents with concerns can ask the field office manager for a female examiner or that a supervisor chaperone.

Cat had administered drive tests for less than six months when the first seven victims came to light. He was placed on paid administrative leave immediately after a 16-year-old girl accused him of fondling her Oct. 27. On Nov. 19, the DMV terminated Cat after conducting its own investigation.

In November, Cat was arrested at his San Jose home on 14 charges but immediately released on $50,000 bail. As first reported in the Daily Journal Jan. 5, San Mateo County prosecutors filed 15 more charges from seven more minor females allegedly occurring between July and October 2004. He is now charged with 29 counts of lewd acts and sexual battery. If convicted, he faces up to a year in jail for each count. He is scheduled for trial in June.

Cat took the girls up to isolated areas in the Redwood City hills during their tests and flustered them with difficult driving requests, according to Galine's clients. Cat then reportedly hugged and fondled the girls. He also reportedly failed many of the victims.

DMV has never publicly denied Cat's actions but Branch said he underwent a criminal background check prior to his employment.

"I don't think they ever denied he did it but their defense is that they didn't know. We want to show that they did know," Galine said.

If the victims do indeed testify at the March 28 hearing before the state Personnel Board , the agency may be placed in an awkward position. On one hand it is being sued for allowing fondling — a charge it will most likely deny — but on the other it is asking those same victims to help keep Cat from successfully being rehired.

Branch said he was unable to substantiate Galine's claims about the hearing. However, even if true, he cannot comment on pending procedures. If the lawsuit proceeds, the state attorney general will represent the DMV, Branch said.

Michelle Durand can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 104. What do you think of this story? Send a letter to the editor: letters@smdailyjournal.com.