Lyft passenger sues ‘agitated’ driver

A Baldwin Borough man is suing San Franciscobased ride share company Lyft after a driver allegedly punched him in the face after an argument about changing the radio station during a ride in February.

According to a complaint filed Friday in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, Quinn P. Shannon said he used Lyft to order a ride from a Shadyside address to his home Feb. 6.

He was picked up in a Dodge Charger operated by Deandre Burrell of Coroapolis. A few moments after the ride began, in the 1100 block of South Negley Avenue, Mr. Shannon asked Mr. Burrell to change the station from sports talk radio to something else, preferably music.

Mr. Burrell then “became visibly agitated” and stopped the vehicle and ordered Mr. Shannon to get out of the car, the lawsuit said. The two men argued and Mr. Burrell “aggressively confronted” Mr. Shannon, who tried to calmhim down.

Instead, Mr. Burrell “without provocation or justification, suddenly and violently” punched him in the face, the lawsuit says. Mr. Shannon fell to the ground and was bleeding from the left side of his mouth. Mr. Burrell, who has a criminal history for crimes including assault dating to 2005, panicked and apologized to Mr. Shannon and offered to take him to the Mercy Hospital emergency room and pay for his medical expenses if he would not report the crime, the lawsuit says.

Mr. Shannon was frightened and in need of medical attention, and agreed to have Mr. Burrell take him to the hospital, where Mr. Shannon received multiple stitches. While there, the complaint states that Mr. Burrell “continued to intimidate” by monitoring Mr. Shannon’s cell phone activity and conversations with hospital staff so that he wouldn’t report what had happened. Mr. Burrell paid Mr. Shannon’s co-pay and took him home.

The lawsuit contends that Lyft was negligent and violated its own policies by allowing Mr. Burrell to drive, as a criminal background check that revealed his history of violent offenses should have disqualified him from working for Lyft.

No specific damage amount was mentioned in the lawsuit.