Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
A former Massachusetts State Police trooper has been sentenced in federal court for his involvement in a scheme to falsify Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) test scores. Calvin Butner, 64, of Halifax, was given a three-month prison sentence and one year of supervised release, with the first three months under home confinement. The government had recommended a longer sentence of 15 months.
Butner pleaded guilty in April 2025 to charges including conspiracy to falsify records, falsifying records and aiding and abetting, and making false statements. He was charged in January 2024 as part of a larger indictment involving five others.
The Massachusetts State Police CDL Unit is responsible for administering CDL skills tests, which are required by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. These tests include vehicle inspection, basic control skills, and a road test. Only applicants who pass all parts of the test are eligible for a CDL.
Between May 2019 and January 2023, Butner and other members of the unit gave passing scores to at least 17 applicants regardless of their actual performance. The group used the term “golden” to refer to these favored applicants. Text messages sent by Butner included:
“This guys a mess. . . . Lol. He owes u a prime rib 6inch.”
“Golden mess.”
“He’s a mess Class A truck 2psi loss with truck running truck cut our again while timing ”
“Total mess this guy[.] i think some time[s] we should just do what we can but not golden. I’ll tell you about it later.”
Butner also passed three applicants who failed the test and five who did not take it at all.
All individuals identified as unqualified during the investigation have been reported to the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and Christopher A. Scharf, Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General in the Northeast Region announced the sentencing. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine J. Wichers and Adam W. Deitch are prosecuting the case.
