Nashville Uber Driver Bonnie Barnes says she was assaulted on Saturday, when she was going to pick up her second ride request for the day. The pickup was in Gallatin, going to Opry Mills Mall. When she arrived, Barnes says that the rider did not have the appropriate car seats for her children, so she refused to take them – yet the Uber driver refused to cancel the ride, even telling the passenger “I’m not cancelling it”.
Instead of simply rolling up her window and driving away, she continued to argue with the passenger, and eventually called 911, telling the operator that the customer “put her hands on me”. After the driver gestured and screamed at the passenger through the window, the passenger did eventually swat her hand back, but in no means did it appear that she “put her hands on her”. In fact, it was the passenger that left the situation.
On the video below, she screams at the customer “You won’t be on Uber no more!” and dials 911 and repeatedly screams “You put your hands on me, you put your hands on me” once the operator is on the line listening. She continues:
“…she took my picture, and I’m sure I’ll be on Facebook as a racist bitch, which I’m not, I have mixed grandchildren and I love them very much, and I would kill anybody over them, so I am NOT racist at all.”
Later in the video (2nd clip below), she also says:
“stay away from 614 (apartment complex), they are nothing but a bunch of people who hide other people from the police, and I was really scared for my safety, because there was all kinds of people gathering around.”
Here’s the driver’s dash-cam footage sent to our tipline:
We have reached out to Uber for comment, but have not yet heard back. Got a tip? let us know, or email tips@scoopnashville.com
