Cabbies Get Tough About Shootings

Following two shootings of female cabdrivers, some San Diego cabbies have launched their own effort to track down the assailant.

On Thursday night, handprinted, unsigned leaflets began to appear in the downtown area, announcing a deadline for local criminals to produce the name of a suspect.

“Attention! Pimps, junkies, dealers, etc. Someone has decided that cabdrivers, especially women drivers, are fair game for robbery and murder. We the cabbies of San Diego will not stand for this,” the leaflet stated.

“Somebody knows who the scum responsible for these attacks is. We want his name. Unless we get his name by 12 noon, Saturday, Aug. 2, we will start reporting any and all illegal activities to the police and news media. We are taking photos, writing down addresses, names, etc. There are 1,500 cabbies in San Diego. Help us out or feel the heat.”

The leaflets were apparently posted and distributed by several cabdrivers, but police have not been contacted by the group, police spokesman Bill Robinson said. Interviews with several cabdrivers failed to identify who had organized the effort.

Police still have no suspects in the shooting of Sharyn Kamrath, who was dumped out of her cab and left to die on a La Jolla roadside after being robbed Tuesday night. Police have not determined whether the shooting is related to the June 27 slaying of cabdriver Linda Sue Younger, who was found shot to death in Old Town.

Kamrath, paralyzed from the neck down, is still in critical condition at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla.

Jeff Hano, general manager of Coast Cab, Kamrath’s employer, said that several drivers from Coast Cab and Orange Cab company had distributed the leaflets independently. Several hundred flyers were passed out, he said.

Asked whether the drivers would be able to back up their threat about reporting criminal activity, Hano said:

“I’m assume that whoever organized this has some plan of action. I don’t think cabbies can ever prove that something illegal is going on, but there are a lot of times when you know that it’s pretty suspicious. When you’re out on the streets all night you see an awful lot going on.”

Hano said that he had heard that many cabdrivers have been arming themselves in the wake of the shootings.

“This isn’t something that I approve of,” he said. “My feeling is that they’re only more likely to get themselves in trouble.”

Coast Cab has asked all its female drivers to move off of night shifts until Kamrath’s assailant is found. Two female drivers who refused to change shifts will only be responding to radio calls, Hano said.

Cabdrivers interviewed outside Lindbergh Field on Friday appeared edgy about the shootings. “A lot of the women drivers used to head downtown for more fares after the airport closed at 11. Now they’re just heading home,” said Roy Inslee, a driver for USA Taxi Cab Co. for 3 years.

Inslee said that his girlfriend used to drive a cab at night but has since limited herself to daytime runs.

“There’s been a big influx of women into the field in the past few years, since it’s not too strenuous and allows them to set their own hours if they’re taking care of children. I guess someone figured out how vulnerable they are,” he said.

“I think you’ll see them leaving in droves if there’s another shooting,” Inslee said. “It was always dangerous, but no one got shot before.”

One driver said that there had been talk of a strike by cabdrivers if the police did not step up efforts to ensure their safety.

“We’re getting killed and all they do is get in our way,” he said, waving at a traffic officer who was limiting the number of cabs that line up waiting for fares at the airport.