CBS2: Uber Driver Accused Of Assault Still Has TLC License
UPDATED 05/02/15 4:32 p.m.
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- An Uber driver accused of touching a woman inappropriately still has his Taxi and Limousine Commission license, CBS2 has learned.
The driver has been suspended by Uber, but he is still technically licensed and could be working elsewhere as a cabbie, CBS2 reported.
That's a rule that the TLC says it is trying to change.
The woman who accused the driver spoke exclusively to CBS2's Tracee Carrasco. She was still too shaken to be on camera or have her name used.
The 31-year-old was working on the Lower East Side when she called Uber to pick her up just after 2 a.m. Thursday to go home to Woodside, Queens. She said she had fallen asleep in the back seat and woke up in front of her building to find the driver touching her.
"I feel his hand touch, caress my face to wake me up, and then he tells me, 'You look stressed,'" she said. "So he goes to the back seat grabs me by the shoulders."
She said she fought back.
"He continues to grab my face and lean in for a kiss, and I forcefully pushed him away," she said. "And luckily, the door was unlocked, so I was able to grab my things and just run back to my house."
She said she was thankful she woke up when she did.
"If I hadn't pushed him away, then I'm pretty certain he would have done more," she said.
The woman said she has filed a report with the NYPD, and says they're classifying the case as "harassment."
A representative of Uber said, "This is a troubling report and we have immediately suspended the driver as we investigate further."
Uber told CBS2 the driver is licensed by the TLC and passed the TLC background check.
The victim is calling for a stricter screening process.
"You could have a clean record, but there's no way to tell that this guy is going to take advantage of a woman," she said.
Complaints about drivers should be reported to the TLC. You can also call 311 if you have a complaint about a driver.
An Uber spokesman on Saturday reported that the rider was advised to file a complaint with the TLC through 311, and that she reported doing so.