Alex wrote:
Taxi driver who refused to take dying woman keeps his licence
Robert Melrose escaped with a severe warning from Glasgow licensing chiefs but was warned he would lose his licence if he was ever reported again. Melrose drove off after refusing to carry cancer victim Sita Picton, who died three weeks later.
Ms Picton's husband was outraged at the decision to issue a severe warning. Neil Docherty said: "I want him off the road. "He shouldn't be working with the public after this shameful act."
Glasgow City Council's licensing committee was told Melrose, from Govan, drove off after seeing Ms Picton was wheelchair-bound. The committee heard Ms Picton, of Scotstoun, asked if she could be strapped into the back of his black cab but the driver told her he "could not be bothered with this rigmarole" and drove off, leaving the mother-of-three and a friend stranded on Dumbarton Road, Partick.
Melrose denied the claims and said he offered to take the pair but did not have the equipment to strap in her wheelchair. But Mr Docherty denied such a conversation took place. And Melrose couldn't explain why he didn't call for another cab to pick up the two passengers.
The pair had to wait another 30 minutes in the rain before they were picked up by another taxi. Ms Picton, a child psychologist at Yorkhill Sick Kids' hospital, died from her illness just three weeks after the incident in November last year - only days after her 40th birthday.
Melrose was found guilty of breaching three conditions of his taxi driver's licence and warned if he stepped out of line again he would face losing his licence altogether.
Today Mr Docherty said he was shocked by the decision to allow Melrose to continue as a cabbie. He said: "My wife died three weeks after this, which just goes to show how ill she was. "All this guy wanted to do was make money and when he realised it was going to take time to put my wife in the taxi he drove off."
Melrose refused to comment when leaving the Burgh Court where the hearing took place.
Dragging on every heart string here: w/c, cancer, dying woman with kids, works with sick kids, left in the pouring rain. The driver did not want the job, thats it, all the rest is irrelevent. We are not slaves no other job or profession forces people to work against their will. I cannot walk into a pub and demand to be served, the landlord has the right to refuse to serve me without giving any reason. I have every sympathy for the woman and her family and do not wish to make light of her tragedy. But people who exploit cases like this with shock headlines and horror stories are the "scumbags of the year". I do not believe anyone in a w/c would go out without arranging transport in advance or have the telephone number of a reliable service provider. Very little encouragement is given to those that chose to provide WAV's. Carrot is always better than stick, zero rate VAT on WAV's, reduce license fee, give fuel rebates etc. that will produce WAV's and drivers who will do the jobs willingley.
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