Columnist Jeff German: Bringing vision to cab camera debate

Wednesday, May 5, 2004 | 11:30 a.m.

Jeff German's column appears Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays in the Sun. Reach him at german@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4067.

There's nothing like a little musical chairs to shake up a public board that has lost sight of its mission.

As it continues to receive criticism for failing to order cameras in cabs to protect drivers, the state Taxicab Authority Board has been hit with the resignation of another member.

The departure of Jo Anna Wesley-Winn, the second anti-camera board member to leave within the last month, is being welcomed by cabbies dealing with a rising crime rate.

Wesley-Winn informed Gov. Kenny Guinn of her decision last week amid concerns within the taxicab industry about her lack of dedication to the job. She joins Chairwoman Lia Roberts, who also had trouble staying focused on issues important to the industry. Roberts resigned April 9 to run for president of her native Romania.

Deputy Attorney General Diana Hegeduis, who provided legal advice to the five-member board during the heated camera debate, also has been replaced.

Wesley-Winn probably was the least-liked board member among drivers, who criticized her poor attendance record at board meetings. She missed about half of the meetings this past year.

When she did go to meetings, drivers found her biased against them. For proof they pointed to a Feb. 24 hearing in which Wesley-Winn led the charge against a regulation that would have mandated still cameras in cabs.

The board, in a 4-1 vote, refused to approve the regulation, which was opposed by the cab company owners but endorsed by law enforcement authorities.

Crime has not taken a holiday since Feb. 24.

According to Taxicab Authority records, there have been seven armed robberies against cabbies, including three this past weekend. All but one of the robberies remain unsolved, along with eight others pulled off by a serial robber in the weeks prior to the hearing.

Taxicab Authority Administrator Yvette Moore spent months preparing the camera regulation. She even held a series of public workshops. But after six hours of testimony, dominated by the cab company owners, the board opted instead to study the issue for another year.

Drivers have since filed a complaint against the board with the attorney general's office, alleging the vote authorizing the study was not part of the hearing's publicly noticed agenda and violated the open meetings law.

They're hoping the attorney general's office, which still was reviewing the matter on Tuesday, will void the Feb. 24 vote and order the board to revisit the camera issue in a fairer manner.

"All we're looking for is balance and integrity," says Craig Harris, a driver who publishes the Trip Sheet, a magazine for cabbies.

The odds of reaching that goal have increased with the resignations of both Wesley-Winn and Roberts.

Guinn last week named Edward Goldman, a veteran Clark County School District administrator, to succeed Roberts.

On paper Goldman, who has a doctorate in education from UNLV, has the skill and experience to grasp the seriousness of the camera issue.

He certainly can't be any worse than Roberts who, at the height of the debate, when her leadership on the board was most needed, spent her time campaigning in Romania.

Drivers are hoping Guinn replaces Wesley-Winn with someone possessing credentials as impressive as Goldman's.

Then maybe the Taxicab Authority Board eventually will figure out the importance of putting cameras in cabs.