A New York City cab driver accused of refusing a ride to weatherman Al Roker and instead picking up a white man has pleaded guilty to a service refusal violation and was fined $500 for the offense, according to the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission, The Associated Press reported.
The NBC's "Today" show weatherman filed a complaint against a taxi driver, identified as Mahabur Rahman, in November after the cabbie drove off as Roker, who was with his sick son, tried to open the door of the vehicle and picked up a "white guy a block away," as HNGN previously reported.
"Filed a complaint today after getting passed up again by a NYC Yellow cab. Cabbie picked up a white guy a block away. Wonder why Uber wins?" Roker tweeted at the time.
Roken then went on to say how people of color go through such racial discrimination on a daily basis. "This happens to folks of color every day. And while most cabbies do their job, there are those ignorant, racist ones who hurt the others," he added. "What really hurts, my 13 yr. old boy was with me and asked why the cabbie passed us. I said, 'Nick, ignorant people make dumb choices.'"
Describing the incident as a mistake, Rahman defended his service refusal by saying that he simply didn't see Roker. This marked Rahman's second service refusal violation. He settled the first one for $200 in May, according to the New York Daily News.
