Long lines and annoying paperwork are expected at the DMV, but one transgender woman had to deal with a lot more.
Amber Yust, a 23-year-old software engineer, went to the Department of Motor Vehicles on Fell Street in San Francisco to register her sex change from male to female.
Everything was cool until she got a nasty letter a few days later, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The DMV employee she spoke with in October warns in his letter that homosexuality is "an abomination that leads to hell" and suggested Yust go to a church website for information on finding salvation.
Yust also got a package with a DVD and pamphlet from the fundamentalist church about being possessed by demons.
"[It's] scary that someone who's part of a government agency is able to take my personal information and get in touch with me," Yust told the Chronicle. "I don't think anyone could feel safe going to a DMV where they knew someone like that was working."
The employee was put on administrative leave with pay during an investigation, DMV Spokesman Michael Marando said.
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The same employee got into hot water back in 2009 when he refused to help another transgender woman with her name-change application. He told the woman that "God will send you to hell," according to Kristina Wertz, legal director of the Transgender Law Center.
After the 2009 incident, the center gave training sessions to DMV employees about a California law that prohibits discrimination based on someone's sexual identity.
Christopher Dolan, Yust's lawyer, said the DMV should have fired the employee the first time.
"They left him in a position where he could harm people," he said.
This week, Yust filed a damage claim against the DMV and plans on following through with a lawsuit.
