Сlassmate of Murdered Female Student Offers a Way to Protect Uber Passengers from Mixing up Cars
After the murder of the USC student, Samantha Josephson, one of her former classmates has managed to transform the pain into a brilliant idea that could help others not to become possible next victims.
Samantha Josephson, 21, was found dead in a field on Friday afternoon on March 29, approximately 14 hours after boarding a vehicle she mistook for her Uber, according to police reports in Columbia, South Carolina.
A young woman who met the tragically murdered student during a course has initiated a petition to add a QR code to the process of verifying a driver or a client in apps such as Uber or Lyft to increase the level of security.
A former classmate of murdered USC student Samantha Josephson says she's not placing the blame on rideshare companies, but she's proposing they use QR codes to increase safety. https://t.co/4V4kU7o5lm @wis10
— Mary King (@MaryKingTV) April 5, 2019
Sydney Ford explained in an interview that this simple idea occurred to her while traveling in the back seat of her last Lyft, and she thought it would be so easy to apply that she decided to publicly request that companies and users begin to implement it.
"I remember clearly looking and thinking, what if the vehicle has locks for children like the vehicle she was in?" said Ford.
Chilling video shows University of South Carolina student Samantha Josephson a short time before she was murdered, stepping into her accused killer’s car. https://t.co/noRZsTScA5 pic.twitter.com/YAy5KVXpGr
— USA TODAY (@USATODAY) April 2, 2019
Adding this simple step to the existing security measures for this type of apps would be so easy to carry out by the owners of these companies that, in a few days, the petition has more than 40,000 signatures.
"Take your phone, scan the barcode, a QR code, either on the driver's phone or in the driver's window, it will be verified for both the driver and the passenger," explained Sydney Ford.
Classmate of Samantha Josephson creates petition to add QR code to ride-shares. https://t.co/0JnfNQm3w8 pic.twitter.com/EbIi7At8b6
— WACH FOX (@wachfox) April 5, 2019
Josephson's death made the young woman feel like she was vomiting, however, she converted all that anger into positive action. Ford revealed that Lyft drivers approve the idea because apparently, they often have problems with the wrong people who get into their cars.
The investigation regarding USC student Samantha Josephson is now a homicide case. Her body was found by hunters in rural Clarendon Co. late yesterday afternoon. Suspect Nathaniel Rowland has been charged w/ Murder & Kidnapping by SLED. Agents have been an integral part in case. pic.twitter.com/2tj8TVRAex
— Columbia Police Dept (@ColumbiaPDSC) March 30, 2019
We hope that this petition will be taken into account in the future, meanwhile, trust your instincts and use your best judgement when riding with Uber or Lyft. And if you ever feel you’re in a dangerous situation, call 911 immediately.
In another story, Daudah, an Uber driver, was arrested and accused of sexually assaulting a passenger on March 30, 2019, in Boston Massachusetts.
A Ugandan national, Mayanja Daudah has been charged with two counts of rape in a Boston, Massachusetts court USA. It is alleged that the 37-year-old uber driver sexually assaulted a woman he picked up in his car early Saturday morning in Massachusetts.
— Masawi Eve (@EveMasawi) April 2, 2019
Courtesy Photo pic.twitter.com/zx0H84Lffv
The man wept noisily throughout the court audience, much to Judge Richard Sinnott's disgust, who ended up telling him to "knock it off!". Daudah's defense attorney Kim Giampietro revealed that he denies the allegations.
