This is a disturbing statistic discussed in this article.
From the article:
“A lawsuit filed in California in 2019 brought by at least 14 plaintiffs, accused Lyft of failing to conduct adequate background checks for its drivers, allowing for a pattern that “induces” young, unaccompanied or intoxicated female passengers to use its service and subjects them to harassment and sexual assault.”
While there could certainly be a troubling pattern with Lyft drivers, themselves, sexually assaulting single female passengers, we can also imagine many instances of passenger-on passenger-sexual assaults or rapes occurring in the back seats of ride-share vehicles. It is no secret these vehicles are commonly used by passengers who have been heavily drinking and are intoxicated. Many sexual assaults occur when one or both parties are intoxicated.
If you are sexually assaulted or raped in the back of a Lyft or Uber, try, in the moment, to document what happened as best as you can. Use your phone to video or photograph the suspect and the driver. Be sure to get the license plate of the Uber or Lyft vehicle (including by photograph). And if the vehicle was ordered on your Lyft or Uber app, then be sure to save all pertinent data from that transaction.
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Finally – and we tell this to all rape victims – if you are raped or sexually assaulted, immediately call the police, go to the hospital and get a SANE exam (also known as a rape kit). These exams preserve physical evidence of the rape such as DNA, bruising, cuts, and different forms of genital trauma.
Stay safe out there. But if you or a loved one is raped or sexually assaulted anywhere – including in a ride-share vehicle – contact the sexual assault lawyers at Crowe Arnold & Majors, LLP. We will try our best to provide compassionate guidance and to evaluate your case to see if you have a viable civil claim.
