Friday, Sept. 10, 2004 | 5:16 a.m.
Jeff German's column appears Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays in the Sun. Reach him at [email protected] or (702) 259-4067.
WEEKEND EDITION
September 11 - 12, 2004
In the aftermath of last month's slaying of cabbie Pairoj Chitprasart, the do-nothing state Taxicab Authority Board is once more considering cameras in cabs.
But as usual -- even with the public outrage over Chitprasart's death and the swiftness with which District Attorney David Roger is moving to prosecute his accused killer -- the five-member board is inching its way toward any meaningful action.
Chitprasart, a 51-year-old immigrant from Thailand who left behind a 14-year-old son, died an agonizing death. He suffered for several days after being doused with gasoline and set on fire in an Aug. 20 robbery attempt.
Driving a cab was not Chitprasart's first love. He did it to keep afloat a local Thai language newspaper he published with his girlfriend. One of his favorite subjects was the need for cameras in cabs.
The suspect in his death, 33-year-old James Scholl who, it turns out, has robbed at least one other driver, is scheduled to face a preliminary hearing on Monday in the courtroom of Justice of the Peace Deborah Lippis.
According to police reports, Scholl hit a cabbie over the head with a brick and stole $130 from him in a robbery just eight days before he allegedly held up Chitprasart. There's a chance that, if cameras had been in the cabs, Scholl might have chosen not to rob anyone, which means Chitprasart might be alive today.
Though justice is moving rapidly in the criminal case, there is no sense of urgency on the part of the Taxicab Authority to take measures to prevent crimes against other cabbies who, according to the U.S. Labor Department, are four times more likely to be the victim of a homicide than police officers.
"These poor guys are sitting ducks," Roger says. "They don't make a lot of money, and they provide an important service to our community."
Roger says he wishes he had a photo of Scholl inside Chitprasart's cab to bolster his case at Monday's preliminary hearing.
If only the Taxicab Authority Board -- a part-time body of political appointees (chosen by the governor) with no experience in the industry -- understood the importance of cameras in cabs as much as Roger does.
We've been waiting since February for the board to order the installation of cameras. It's the not the ultimate answer to reducing crimes against drivers, but it's a good beginning.
Law enforcement authorities, cabbies and Taxicab Authority Administrator Yvette Moore, who oversees the industry on a daily basis, all are pushing for cameras. They see it as not only a deterrent but also a valuable tool in apprehending and convicting criminals.
But the taxi companies, too cheap to do the right thing and foot the bill, have stonewalled the effort.
And so the clueless Taxicab Authority Board continues to move at a snail's pace, as if Chitprasart's life had no meaning.
A public hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 28 to hear the results of an unnecessary board-approved study on cameras being conducted by UNLV economics professor Keith Schwer.
The study is nothing but a ploy engineered by the greedy taxi companies in February to delay cameras in cabs for as long as they can. One company is even paying for the study, which is basically a survey of drivers, whom we already know from past surveys favor cameras.
There is no mystery here, and there should be no surprises when Schwer unveils his results. Cameras are wanted and needed.
Yet the board doesn't plan to take action on Sept. 28. It simply plans to listen to Schwer. It also plans to hear pleas for the umpteenth time from drivers and, in all likelihood, more moaning from the owners about the burden being placed on them.
Any order from the board will be put off until the end of October. And it could be months more before the order, assuming it's approved, actually takes effect.
As for crime, we can be sure it won't be taking a day off while the do-nothing board takes its merry time coming to a decision.
This is a shameful example of a public body that doesn't know how to act in the public's interest.
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