Two Madison taxi drivers were assaulted and robbed in separate incidents Wednesday night. According to the Madison Police Department, both incidents involved a pair of black males and, in both cases, the suspects took off on foot with a small amount of money.
The robberies occurred on separate sides of the city, with the first taking place at approximately 10 p.m. Wednesday on the 400 block of Kedzie Street. A little over an hour later, the second robbery occurred on the 300 block of Kent Lane.
One Madison Taxi driver received multiple facial fractures after being attacked just after 11 p.m., police said.
He's in bad shape,\ Madison Taxi Vice President Erik Brekke said. ""His eye socket is broken and his face smashed in.""
According to Brekke, the driver was on his first fare of the night, which means he had only approximately $15 in change when he was attacked and robbed. The driver in the other taxicab robbery also received facial injuries.
The attacks brought some of the perils of late-night cab driving sharply into focus both for the victims and for other drivers.
""It's one of the most dangerous jobs in the world,"" Brekke said.
The nature of the job exposes taxicab drivers to many dangerous situations. They may encounter difficult passengers who refuse to pay, are verbally abusive or are excessively drunk. Cab drivers must continue their routes into early morning hours, and they drive alone.
They also must pick up customers from neighborhoods all across the Madison area. In November, cab drivers were targeted in a string of robberies in the city's Allied Drive area.
""By law you have to pick up everywhere,"" Brekke said. ""You can't discriminate against bad neighborhoods.""
Since drivers work alone and carry money, potential criminals often view them as easy targets.
""They just think that's a place to access some money,"" said UW-Madison law professor David Schultz.
Taxicab companies train their drivers to take precautions to ensure their safety. Badger Cab General Manager Roy Ston advises his drivers to keep their doors locked and windows up while waiting. Badger Cab policy also guides drivers to be cautious when picking up ‘flags,' people who hail cabs without warning.
According to Ston, violent assaults and robberies of cab drivers are rare in the Madison area. Wednesday night's incidents were the first in 2006. The last time a taxicab robbery occurred in Madison was in November 2005, Ston said.
""During November, there were six robberies, all committed by the same perpetrator,"" Ston said, referring to the now-arrested Marijuan Haynes.
However, Haynes used a gun to rob his victims, a method different from the beatings of last week.
\
