Mahabur Rahman, New York taxi driver accused of refusing Al Roker is fined

[FrodosPet]

http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/new-york-taxi-driver-accused-of-refusing-al-roker-is-fined-1.11315885

January 11, 2016 9:27 PM
By The Associated Press

A New York City taxi driver who black NBC "Today" show weatherman Al Roker said passed him by in favor of picking up another fare for racial reasons has pleaded guilty to a service refusal violation and has been fined.

The Taxi and Limousine Commission says driver Mahabur Rahman made his plea last month and was fined $500.

Roker had filed a complaint in November and wrote on social media he and his son had been ignored for racial reasons. He said the driver picked up a white man a block away.

The commission says it was the driver's second refusal violation. The driver hung up a phone Monday when called for comment.

~ snip ~

[msanthrope]

1. He shouldn't be driving a cab. nt

[Warren DeMontague]

4. No, he shouldn't. Neither should the driver who kicked the lesbian couple out of the cab

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3034982/Taxi-driver-ordered-pay-lesbian-couple-10-000-telling-stop-kissing-cab-behavior-bedroom.html

Unfortunately, unlike this case of straight up obvious racism, the anti-gay can driver gets defended, even here on DU, because of special religious feels which "must be respected".

If you're hired to do the job, you do the job, to my mind.

If your belief system -whatever it is- means you can't or wont pick up the AA weather reporter, drive the gay couple, transport the luggage with the booze, issue the marriage license, dispense the birth control, or serve the drinks on the airplane, i say FIND A DIFFERENT JOB.

[FrodosPet]

8. They can drive for Uber for 30 cents a mile

Yes, really, 30 cents a mile (minus Uber's 25% commission, gasoline, tires, brakes, repairs, tickets, and advanced depreciation).

OK, so they can pay to drive for Uber.

http://uberpeople.net/threads/30-cents-a-mile-how-on-earth.53488/

[Warren DeMontague]

9. That has nothing to do with what I wrote, as far as I can tell.

Do you support the right cab drivers to refuse service to gay couples due to religious objections?

[FrodosPet]

11. Absolutely not!

I could turn it around: Do you support the right of Uber drivers to refuse service to pregnant women, and yet still charge them?

Uber Driver Refused to Take a Pregnant Woman to the Hospital, Husband Says

http://time.com/4177526/uber-driver-pregnant-woman-hospital/

Victor Luckerson @VLuck Jan. 12, 2016

When a pregnant New York woman in labor and her spouse hailed an Uber in order to go to the hospital, the driver refused to take them, according to her husband.

According to a new report from Fortune, the driver not only declined the woman a ride to the hospital because he feared she would throw up in his car, but even charged the couple $13 for the time spent arguing over the ride.

The woman and her spouse, along with their birthing coach, managed to hail another Uber ride and made it to the hospital safely. But husband David Lee said the car-hailing company wasn’t helpful later when he tried to figure out the name of the driver who abandoned them. The company refused to disclose the full name of the driver due to privacy policies, according to Lee, even though he later found the full name on his email receipt.

~ snip ~

[Egnever]

13. And the woman can dispute the fare and Uber will refund it

Good lord. You aren't really suggesting Uber condoned that are you?

Not to mention she can also report the driver and have him removed.

As far as 30 cents a mile goes I wouldn't do it. No one forces you to drive you know.

Cab drivers pull all kids of nefarious crap as well there are problem drivers in both industries or are you trying to pretend cab drivers don't do these kinds of things?

It is a gamble every time you get into someone else's car. At least with Uber there is a rating system for the drivers and if you fall below the rating threshold your access is revoked. You can also see your drivers rating before he picks you up so if you don't want to take a chance you can look at the rating and if it looks iffy cancel and try again. Every single ride you take with Uber you are asked to rate your driver over time the bad ones get weeded out.

There are pluses and minuses to both cabs and Uber both are flawed but at least on the Uber side you have a lot more control over your experience. Fortunately Ubers presence is forcing the cab companies to adapt and they are making improvements.

5 years or so from now it wont matter the driverless cars are coming and they will replace the drivers in both companies.

[Warren DeMontague]

15. No, but I didnt realize this thread was about Uber.

[CommonSenseDemocrat]

17. Congratulations, you're the first person to hijack your own thread

Lol

[stone space]

18. Nah, not the first. I've seen folks hijack their own threads, before. (nt)

[JI7]

2. this is one reason i would be ok with Uber

[FrodosPet]

3. Uber drivers are just illegal taxi drivers. They are no more moral as a group

http://www.whosdrivingyou.org/rideshare-incidents

Uber’s process for onboarding drivers is dangerously negligent. Neither Uber nor Lyft uses fingerprints or law enforcement to background-check their drivers. And Uber doesn’t even bother to meet with drivers in person before allowing them to ferry passengers.

The result is a series of incidents involving “ridesharing” passengers being harmed and criminal offenders behind the wheel:

Uber driver 'called woman black c*** and punched her after multiple drop-off row'

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/uber-driver-called-woman-black-c-and-punched-her-after-multiple-dropoff-row-a3125686.html

Sunday 29 November 2015

A young mother has accused an Uber driver of calling her a “black c***” and launching a brutal assault after a row over making two drop-offs.

Non-emergency paramedic Taleka White, 27, says she was dragged out of a minicab and punched twice in the face after her driver flew into a rage in Addiscombe, south London, in the early hours of Sunday.

She says her face smashed into the ground after she was sent flying by the second blow.

The man allegedly called her a “stupid black c***” and a “black b***” during the ordeal at about 3.30am.

~ snip ~

Uber driver arrested in connection with Scottsdale sex assault

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/scottsdale/2016/01/01/uber-driver-arrested-for-sexually-assaulting-young-girl/78197410/

Jerod MacDonald-Evoy, The Republic | azcentral.com
8:46 p.m. MST January 1, 2016

The Scottsdale Police Department has arrested an Uber driver on suspicion of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old in June, police said.

Police confirmed the following information, citing court documents not readily available to The Arizona Republic.

James R. Stough, 53, picked up the 16-year-old girl from her school in Phoenix after she had finished her final exams, according to police. While conversing, the girl revealed to Stough that she was an athlete and had recently injured her ankle.

Before dropping the victim off at her home in north Scottsdale, Stough claimed to be a nurse and pulled over in an undeveloped area of homes near Pinnacle Peak and Pima roads, court documents show.

~ snip ~

Bourne man identified as Uber driver pleads not guilty to rape charges

http://www.capecodtimes.com/article/20160108/NEWS/160109589/101015?rssfeed=true

By Haven Orecchio-Egresitz
Posted Jan. 8, 2016 at 2:00 AM
Updated Jan 8, 2016 at 6:27 AM

BARNSTABLE — A 39-year-old Bourne man who, according to his attorney, worked as a driver for the Uber ride-sharing service pleaded not guilty Thursday in Barnstable Superior Court to rape and assault charges.

Yves Goin had been indicted Dec. 11 by a Barnstable County grand jury on one count of rape, two counts of indecent assault and battery on a person over 14 and one count of assault to rape, according to Superior Court documents.

In July, he was indicted and arraigned on separate charges of rape and assault and battery, according to court documents.

Because the charges involve sexual assault, police reports were not available and the Bourne police would not comment on whether the more recent charges were connected to his job. The ride-sharing service, however, has come under fire nationwide for the way it handles background checks for its employees, and some of the charges against Goin date back to 2002.

~ snip ~

And many many more at the link above.

[JI7]

5. i know UBer has many problems but i'm saying if one is a black man who is regularly ignored

i can see why Uber would work for them. and that's probably the only problem i have with cab drivers.

[Egnever]

7. The difference of course

You know who your Uber driver is and can report him or her easily and have him removed. You don't have to remember anything because the driver is logged in the software.

Also I don't know where the first link got the info Uber doesn't even meet the drivers. I had to go into the office when I signed up to have photos taken and to provide documents as well as have my vehicle inspected.

Uber isn't perfect by any means but the idea they onboard drivers without ever even seeing them is nonsense at least where I am. They may do it differently elsewhere or did do it differently in the past but it is not the case now.

[FrodosPet]

10. This is an improvement then

Are you currently driving for Uber?

Is it as bad as so many drivers are saying, especially after the latest rate cuts?

[Egnever]

12. I drive occasionaly

I wouldn't do it as a job and would never suggest anyone do so.

It isn't meant to be a full time job it is a ride sharing service not a cab company. Rates here were recently cut but the rate here is 1.10 per mile.

As a ride sharing service it works for me. I turn it on when i am out and about and have free time on my hands a few rides and I pay for my gas for the week. I am out and driving anyway, grabbing someone and taking them somewhere is easy and like I said fills my tank for the week in my spare time.

I like driving and for me it is not my job, it's side money. I pick up when I am out anyway and have the time to do it.

As a Job it would probably wouldn't be worth it. The money is not that great and the wear and tear you would put on your car doing it full time would be hard to justify. You would be better off getting a real job in the end more than likely. If you want to drive for a living drive a cab.

I make better money at my real job I would never work full time for Uber. But again as a ride sharing gig I do in my free time it's nice side money here in Vegas. Vegas is pretty much built for it though we have a huge tourist base especially on the weekends and the cab companies here practically refuse to service the locals. I am not sure if it works as well in other cities.

[CommonSenseDemocrat]

19. I've reported multiple cab drivers to the TLC. All but one has been fined.

[nilesobek]

6. The driver was righteously fined

and admitted his guilt. I do believe it was racially motivated because of the quick guilty plea and modest outcome

On the other hand, I wouldn't give Al Roker a ride if he had a cardboard homeless sign in Death Valley. His atriciously ignorant remarks, especially about epilepsy, have offended me. Get off yer ass and walk Roker, start kicking rocks.

[Skittles]

14. OK I Googled Roker and epilepsy

is that regarding a tasteless joke he made and apologized for nine years ago? I am no Roker fan but you make it sound like he has a penchant for making horrible remarks about epilepsy.

[nilesobek]

16. No you are right

I just took offense and remember his remarks. Roker does not deserve to be refused a taxi because he is black.

[Skittles]

20. it's all good

like I said, I am not an Al Roker fan -he just annoys me - but I'd kick on anyone making fun of epilepsy.......and yup, his getting bypassed for a taxi is disturbing