Cabdriver fired for refusing blind man a ride

Saturday, Aug. 23, 1997 | 2:12 a.m.

Donald L. Drake, president of Baker and Drake Yellow Cab in Reno, said the driver violated federal and state laws requiring public transportation to accommodate people with service animals.

Howard Boteilho of San Francisco, who is in town for a Blinded Veterans Association of America convention at the Sands Regency, was left at the curb Wednesday along with his wife, Lois, by the driver.

"We offer our apologies to the Boteilhos and all blind persons for this illegal act on the part of our driver," Drake said.

All his cabbies have been told of the requirements of the federal Americans With Disabilities Act and Nevada state law, he said.

The driver, an independent contractor who leases his car from Baker and Drake, was fired for breaching his lease, Drake told the Reno Gazette-Journal.

Although the driver told Boteilho that his dispatcher agreed with his decision not to take dogs, Drake produced an incident report written by the dispatcher to the contrary.

"I told (the driver) that by federal law he had to carry assistance dogs," the dispatcher wrote. "Case closed, I hope."

But the driver, who was not identified, ignored the dispatcher's instructions and left the scene.

Boteilho said another driver told him the first cabdriver was right: Taxi drivers can refuse service to anyone.

"We have to get the word out on this," Boteilho said. "It's been the law since 1990 and it's hard to believe taxi drivers in a tourist city like Reno haven't hard about it.

"I'd like the cabbies to be educated about the ADA. It's ilegal to refuse service. We are not third-class citizens."