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Police: Arming St. Pete Cabbies Isn't Answer To Robberies

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By STEPHEN THOMPSON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 24, 2008

ST. PETERSBURG - Police administrators said they warned cab company owners this morning that cabbies carrying guns is not the answer to the city's recent increase in taxi robberies.

"We don't think carrying a firearm in a cab is a good idea," Maj. Mike Puetz said at a news conference after the closed-door meeting with company owners.

At least one of the taxi executives at the meeting doesn't agree.

"If you know I'm armed, I think you want to go somewhere else," said Gary Watson, president of Blue Star taxi and a longtime driver.

The issue arose after two cabdrivers were shot to death this year during robberies. St. Petersburg has had 16 taxi robberies this year, police statistics show. There were 17 in 2007, 16 in 2006 and 18 in 2005, Puetz said.

Two other suggestions – that companies install cameras and partitions between the front and back seats – apparently didn't go over well, either.

Leonard Gelfond, vice president of Independent Taxi Service Co., said cameras have not been shown to be a deterrent. To prove his point, he pulled out a packet handed out by St. Petersburg police at the meeting that included an image from a videotaped cab robbery in Cincinnati.

That camera didn't prevent the robbery, he said.

Joe Rosa, president of Independent, noted that camera systems cost thousands of dollars.

Police administrators conceded that the systems might be too costly for companies that are seeing profits slashed by increasing fuel costs.

Still, Rosa and Gelfond said they would entertain any suggestions made by police.

One reason cabdrivers shouldn't arm themselves, Puetz said, is that they are at a disadvantage because robbers typically are in the back seat and have their weapon drawn, often against the driver's head, before the driver can react with a firearm.

Puetz cited two cases: one in which a cabbie was pistol-whipped with his own gun and one in which the robber wrestled the gun away from the driver.

One simple safety measure police recommended is to have dispatchers get detailed information when people call for a cab, such as the home address of the customer, the customer's exact location and destination.

If the dispatcher gets the impression the caller is being vague or evasive, no cab should be dispatched.

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Reporter Stephen Thompson can be reached at (727) 451-2336 or spthompson@tampatrib.com.

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