[nagdu] A Cab incident with a positive outcome

[Chasity Jackson]

Hi folks. I wanted to come out here and talk about an incident that I 
recently had with a cab company back in July. It got resolved in late July 
early August, but I had a lot of unforseen worry at that time and did not 
come out here and discuss it as early as I would have liked. I had a friend 
in the hospital for a while who was gravely ill at that time, and couldn't 
get my mind wrapped around writing this through and getting it out here. But 
it is a very good story, with a positive ending. We have recently been 
discussing access issues again as they pertain to cab companies, and I 
thought it would be a good time to tell this experience.

Around July 14, I was going to take a cab up to the store to get a few 
things. When the cab came, the driver immmediately said he couldn't 
transport us because he had an alergic reaction to dogs. I explained very 
quickly that unless the allergy rises to the level of a disability, he does 
not have the right to deny us access to his cab. He chose to, however, 
before pulling up all the way, he pulled out, said there would be another 
cab on the way and left.

I notified the cab company. The supervisor agreed with the driver in 
question and said that if he truly had an allergy, it would be hazardous to 
both of us.

I then contacted the Metropolitan Taxi Cab Commission here in St. Louis, 
where the drivers get licensed. At that same time, I contacted Marion to ask 
if I was taking the proper course of action, or if I should have done 
anything differently. He said I was taking the right approach. I spoke with 
a woman at the commission who asked me several questions about the incident. 
One question, however, had me a bit perplexed. She asked me how much my dog 
weighed, and how big my dog was. She said, "It's not a German Shepherd or 
anything like that is it?" I thought this question was irrelevent and 
wondered if she would consider the driver's fear legitimate if my dog was a 
bigger dog, such as a German Shepherd.

I talked to Marion about this and he called her. We found out that she 
wanted this information as identifying information...It was to be used in 
case the driver took the fact that they gave him a citation to court. If the 
driver later said, "No, this wasn't the same dog," they had that identifying 
information and could say that it was.

The lady who worked on this particular case only worked there part time. She 
worked full time, however, as a police officer. She had never dealt with 
laws concerning guide dogs. She researched them and took the necessary 
action in giving the driver a citation that was accompanied by a fine.

I thought this was an experience with a positive outcome. Not only did the 
driver become educated by getting a citation, but the woman, in her work as 
an agent for the commission, learned about guide dog laws, and can now use 
them in her line of work as a police officer.

Just thought I would relay to you a story with a very good outcome.
Chasity