[nagdu] Service Dog Forced To Ride In Taxi Trunk

Tue Jun 7 20:05:30 UTC 2011

Aim higher!  /lol/  I've been wondering that, too.  I think that if you
follow the sound of the person's voice and aim the camera lens towards where
you would look to simulate eye contact, you could get to about the right
spot to get the person in the frame...  It might take practice, but it's the
best I can come up with.  Of course, if you're using the iPhone defensively
-- to get some jerk on audio/video so you can show his/her boss or put it on
YouTube or whatever to cut through the denials that he/she would ever do any
such thing, then you usually have plenty of sound to aim towards...  Of
course, I'm still reviewing the last time I really, really should have had a
camera in hand and ready to go, trying to figure out how I could have used
it and kep my dog and me safe while trying to get out of the mess that I
wanted to get on film.  Sigh.  Still, I am mostly furious with myself for
not having a camera phone in my hand to at least try to use effectively.
Next time...

I dunno.  I really need to practice with digital camera I have, which sucks
because it drains the batteries in under a minute if you try to take
pictures with it.  I think camera phones are easier because they fit in your
hand, so once you figure out where the camera button is and where the lense
is, you can just hold it up fairly unobtrusively and hope for the best.
/grin/  Or see what you get instead of what you thought you were getting.

Tami Smith-Kinney

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of PICKRELL, REBECCA M (TASC)
Sent: Tuesday, June 07, 2011 9:58 AM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Service Dog Forced To Ride In Taxi Trunk

Maybe off topic but if anybody has ideas on how to take a good picture when
you're totally blind, please pass them on. 
The camera functionality of the Iphone is accessable, but how do you
position yourself and the camera to get what you want?
Tami knows all about what happened last time I used a camera:) 

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Tamara Smith-Kinney
Sent: Tuesday, June 07, 2011 12:50 PM
To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Service Dog Forced To Ride In Taxi Trunk

Good heavens!  What a terrible position to be in.  Hard to say what I would
do, having not had to make that choice when I have to get somewhere in a
hurry and don't have time to wait for another cab...  Stuffing the driver in
the trunk sounds like a good option...  Only I don't have the muscles for
it.  /evil grin/

Now I remember why I fret over not having an iPhone! We broke down and got a
cheapo cell phone for safety, and I think it does have a camera...  Must
learn to use it before I go out again!

So the driver has been suspended... Oh, and fined.  So that's a plus.  It
didn't say how much, though.  Maybe if other like-minded cabbies knew what
the consequences of their bad acts would be, they would be more motivated to
shape up and follow the law?  Just a thought.

Tami Smith-Kinney

-----Original Message-----
From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf
Of Ginger Kutsch
Sent: Tuesday, June 07, 2011 3:18 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users
Subject: [nagdu] Service Dog Forced To Ride In Taxi Trunk

Service Dog Forced To Ride In Taxi Trunk

Blind Woman Says Driver Gave Her Ultimatum

Marc Stewart, 7News Reporter

June 6, 2011

DENVER -- A blind woman says a driver told her she would have to put her
guide dog in the trunk of his taxi if she wanted a ride.

Judie Brown says her black lab named Alberto isn't just a best friend; he's
been her lifeline for the past four years.

"If something happened to him. I would just die," said Brown. 

About a month ago, Brown called a cab.

When she walked out front with Alberto, the driver from Union Taxi initially
refused to transport her with Alberto.

"He said, 'No dog in my cab,' " said Brown.

Brown said the driver told her he was allergic to dogs and would only drive
her if Alberto went in the back of his cab.

"I asked him, 'Where in the back?' And he said, 'In the trunk,' " said
Brown.

Late for an appointment, she reluctantly agreed.

"I never hear my dog whine or crying. Ever. Ever. I knew it was terribly
wrong," said Brown.

Colorado law protects guide dogs and their owners, allowing them to ride
together in taxis.

"A service dog is an appliance, similar to a wheelchair. Would you deny them
a wheelchair?" said animal law expert Jay Swearingen.

A manager with Union Taxi tells 7NEWS the driver has been suspended and
fined by the state.

But Judie is scarred and says she's been afraid to travel with Alberto ever
since.

"I've lost my independence. And I do not like it. It makes me angry. And I
want it back," said Brown.

The National Guide Dog Association says they get similar calls, three to 10
times per week. 

URL: http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/28151488/detail.html

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