Evening star., 1933-06-04
court DENOUNCES
METHODS Of TAXI
OPERATION IN D. c.
Justice Hitz 0VerruIes Deci-
sions in Two Damage
Proceedings.
URGES CHANGE IN LAW
TO REMEDY CONDITIONS
Present Situation Of Cutthroat
Responsibility" Is Cited by
Appellate Judge.

Methods Of taxicab operation In
Washington and the laws governing
them were roundly condemned by JUS
tice William Hitz of the District Court
Of Appeals in two decisions of far
reaching effect on the liability of cab
companies to persons injured.
The present methods of selling motor
cars and licensing public vehicles" JUS
tice Hitz declared. lead naturally to
the present situation of cutthroat ire
sponsibility in public service of great
importance and daily danger to many
persons.
While our duty Is to apply the law
as we find it, in this respect we find it
so unsatisfactory that we feel inpelled
to suggest that some change should be
made, either by legislative enactment
or by municipal regulation.
Perhaps an improvement Of this
situation can be found in system of
compulsory insurance, preliminary to
the license and running of the. car, in
favor Of any one injured by its negligent
operation under any arrangement with
the licensee, such as many of our States
now have and such as appears to have
covered hackney coaches in London for
hundred years"
Two Rulings Reversed.
One of the rulings reverses a judg-
ment for the defendant obtained in the
District Supreme Court in the case of
James Callas against the Independent
Taxi Owners Association, Inc, and
Harry j. Shou. driver of Diamond cab.
The other decision reverses a directed
verdict for the defendants obtained in
Municipal Court in the case of Eliza
beth Rhone against the Try Me Cab
Co. and Walter Jackson, owner of one
OF the company's cabs. The plaintiff
IN this case was passenger in the cab,
while in the former case Callas was
injured when Diamond cab collided
with his pushcart.
In the Rhone case both the cab COM
pany and Jackson, the cab owner, filed
affidavits Of poverty with the court by
way OF explanation OF their filing type
written rather than printed briefs.
They stated they were unable to pay
the cost of printing.
Referring to this, Justice Hitz re-
marked in his decision:
$50 this case proceeds in this court
In forma pauperis on all sides, which
serves to emphasize the public interest
and private hardship frequently ap-
pearing in such litigation in this juris-
diction.
Lack of Responsibility.
For we now have In Washington
hundreds of taxicabs engaged-very lit
erally-in public calling; performable
only upon the public streets under pub
lie license: holding out to the public
an Illusion Of Incorporated responsibility
which they do not possess; painted,
named and numbered to heighten that
Illusion; each cab constituting poten-
ttal danger both to its passengers and
to the public; yet having no financial
responsibility to either beyond an
equity Of redemption In some used
motor car.
"In this case, even that is absent, for
while Jackson asserted his ownership
of the car at the license Office and in
his testimony, and while his ownership
was stipulated by counsel, his motion
papers show that he never had any in
terest in the car beyond attempting to
buy it under conditional sales contract
subsequently forfeited
While the cab company apparently
never owned any cab, nor anything else,
beyond chartered misnomer which 1t
leased to cab drivers, and through which
1t called itself cab company when In
fact 1t was cab calling company"
Justice Hitz said that the propriety
Of granting such a charter as that held
by the Try Me Cab Co. might well be
questioned In other proceedings.
The Callas suit against the Independ-
ent Taxi Owners Association was
brought in District Supreme Court
through j. U. Gardiner, counsel for
Callas. The evidence showed that CAL
las, fruit vendor, was injured while
tending his push cart at Fourteenth
street near the Bureau of Engraving
and Printing as a result of collision
with a Diamond cab driven by Schou.
The trial court held that the cab CON-
pany was not liable since it did not
own the cab in question, or any cabs,
being merely an association for the con-
venience and service of the cab owners
and drivers. A jury returned a verdict
for the defendant Schou.
Cites Revenues to Company.
Justice Hitz held that the lower court
had Sired In not permitting the full de-
velopment of the relation between the
taxicab company and the drivers of its
cabs. He stated that since the cab
company admitted 1t receives thousands
OF dollars month in revenues by Ii
censing cab drivers to use its trade
name, it might well be that the court
could hold the individual behind the
corporation liable to persons negligently
injured by it's cabs.
In the Rhone case, the plaintiff was
, passenger in Try Me cab driven by
Joe Williams and owned by Jackson.
The original suit named Williams as a
defendant, but action against him later
vas abandoned.
The cab company claimed 1t was not
liable since 1t did not own the cab and
had no control over 1t. Jackson con-
tended he rented the cab to Williams,
who thereby became an Independent
with any passengers he might
larry. The trial court accepted this
new of the situation and directed
1erdict for both the defendants.
But we find it clear" ruled Justice
ditZ. that the cab was engaged in
public calling; under license of public
issued upon joint applica-
ion Of the cab company and Jackson;
hat at the time of the accident it
oore the name of the company: was
;ent out by the company in response
o an application induced by its adver-
isements; that 1t was made available
or that purpose by jackson, and oper-
tied by a driver furnished by Jackson,
lnder public vehicle license issued to
Jackson.
Upon this showing, we are Of opin-
on that both the company and jack
on are estopped to deny liability to
passenger SO induced to employ the cab
nd injured by negligence of the driver
ent to operate it."
Attorneys In the two cases were Mr..
Gardiner for Callas, Alfred D. Smith
or the Independent Taxi Owners As
ociation, William H. HASTE and Nathan
l. Dobbins for Elizabeth Rhone and
ieorge Z. @. Hayes for the Try Me
lab Co.