Michigan man allegedly embarked on a mass
shooting spree over the weekend, the ridehailing
service Uber is addressing his record as a
driver with the company.
Critics say the episode could bring more
attention to concerns about the fastgrowing
service, which has been dogged by
controversy on the road to becoming one of
the most valuable privately funded companies
in the world.
Jason Dalton, the man arrested in connection
with the Kalamazoo rampage that left six
people dead, is a former insurance adjuster who
had been working as a driver for Uber’s ridehailing
service. Authorities were investigating
unconfirmed reports he may have picked up
passengers in the hours before and after the
rampage on Saturday.
San Francisco-based Uber has been one of the
most successful tech industry startups in recent
years, as millions of customers have flocked to
use its smartphone app for hailing rides in 380
cities around the globe. The company says its
drivers are independent contractors who use the
app to help find customers and schedule trips.
Private backers have poured more than $10
billion into the company, under terms that value
the business at more than $50 billion - making
it the biggest in a recent wave of tech firms that
have grown to enormous size without taking the
traditional step of selling stock to the public.
But since its launch in 2009, Uber has faced
criticism for a pricing formula that can send
rates skyrocketing at times of high demand,
and for side-stepping regulators and licensing
requirements in some cities where it’s opened
for business. And after several reported assaults
by drivers, critics have also complained the
company should do more to screen drivers and
guard passengers’ safety.
Some of that criticism has been raised by
competitors and regulators who argue that
Uber’s success has come as the company
has expanded while seeking to avoid the
strict licensing and permit requirements that
traditional tax companies face.
“I do think this is an outrageous incident that’s
going to draw more attention to this issue,” said
Dave Sutton, spokesman for “Who’s Driving You,”
an organization backed by Uber’s competitors
in the taxi and limousine industry, which has
fought the company’s expansion.
Authorities identified Dalton as a 45-year-old
from Kalamazoo Township who police said
had no criminal record. They said victims of
the shootings in and around the city of
Kalamazoo had no apparent connection to him
or to each other.
Uber spokeswoman Nairi Hourdajian confirmed
Dalton had driven for Uber. Hourdajian wouldn’t
say whether he was picking up fares for the ridesharing
service Saturday night.
Authorities, however, were investigating a
Facebook post which indicated the suspect
was driving erratically around the time of the
shootings and may have picked up at least
one Uber fare while authorities were looking
for him, according to Kalamazoo County
Prosecutor Jeff Getting.
Uber said Sunday that it has offered to assist
authorities in their investigation. In a statement,
Uber chief security officer Joe Sullivan said the
company is “horrified and heartbroken at the
senseless violence.”
While Uber says it screens drivers and conducts
background checks, critics say the ride-hailing
company uses private screening services that
don’t have access to as much information
as local police can obtain when they check
fingerprint records.
The company said earlier this month that it will
pay $28.5 million to settle two lawsuits that
alleged Uber misled customers about safety
procedures and fees. It’s also facing a separate
a lawsuit by district attorneys in San Francisco
and Los Angeles, who alleged that Uber’s checks
failed to prevent the company from hiring
several felons.
If Dalton had no criminal record, it’s not clear
that Uber would have had any reason to keep
him from driving. Uber, meanwhile, instituted
a policy last year that prohibits driver and
passengers from possessing firearms. Anyone
found to be in violation of the policy may be
prohibited from using or driving for the service.
While there have been several cases in which
Uber drivers have been charged with assaulting
passengers, there have also been incidents in
which the company’s drivers have been attacked
by passengers.
Uber has also faced complaints that one of
its executives in New York used information
collected by the Uber app to track a
passenger’s movements. The company has
since said that it has taken steps to protect
passenger’s privacy, including strict limits on
access to the identities of riders.
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