Livery cab driver who shot himself dead in front of New York’s City Hall blamed politicians and ride-sharing services like Uber for ’financially ruining’ his life
A livery driver shot himself dead in his car in front of New York’s City Hall on Monday morning after venting on Facebook about the transportation industry
Douglas Schifter, 61, wrote a lengthy post about two hours before his death blaming ride-sharing services as well as politicians for financially ruining his life
Schifter, a driver since the ’80s, also ranted about issues in the transportation industry in columns he wrote for the for-hire publication Black Car News
Neil Weiss, owner of Black Car News, said his friend had been struggling to pay his bills recently and had to move in with extended family in Pennsylvania
By Minyvonne Burke For Dailymail.com and Associated Press
Published: 18:47 GMT, 6 February 2018 | Updated: 00:06 GMT, 7 February 2018
A livery cab driver in New York vented on Facebook that politicians and ride-sharing services like Uber had ’financially ruined’ his life hours before he shot himself dead on Monday in front of New York’s City Hall.
Douglas Schifter drove up to the east gate of City Hall around 7.10am and shot himself in the head while sitting in his car, the New York Police Department said. The 61-year-old driver was pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured.
Around 5:30am, less than two hours before his suicide, Schifter posted an ominous message on Facebook blaming Uber as well as Mayor Bill de Blasio, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Michael Bloomberg for destroying his livelihood.
’I have been financially ruined because three politicians destroyed my industry and livelihood and Corporate NY stole my services at rates far below fair levels,’ Schifter wrote in a lengthy post.
Douglas Schifter, a livery can driver in New York, killed himself on Monday morning
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Douglas Schifter, a livery can driver in New York, killed himself on Monday morning
Police said Schifter drove to the east gate of New York’s City Hall and shot himself in the head
Police said Schifter drove to the east gate of New York’s City Hall and shot himself in the head
About two hours before his death, Schifter vented on Facebook that ride-sharing services like Uber as well as politicians had ’financially ruined’ his life
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About two hours before his death, Schifter vented on Facebook that ride-sharing services like Uber as well as politicians had ’financially ruined’ his life
’I worked 100-120 consecutive hours almost every week for the past fourteen years. When the industry started in 1981, I averaged 40-50 hours. I cannot survive any longer with working 120 hours! I am not a Slave and I refuse to be one.’
Schifter accused companies of not paying their drivers ’fair rates’ which in turn caused drivers desperate to make ends meet to ’squeeze rates to below operating costs and force professionals like me out of the business’.
’They count their money and we are driven down into the streets we drive becoming homeless and hungry. I will not be a slave working for chump change. I would rather be dead,’ he fumed.
Later in the post, Schifter slammed Uber as a company ’that is a known liar, cheat and thief’.
Schifter expressed similar frustrations in columns he wrote for Black Car News, a publication for the for-hire vehicle industry.
While venting about congestion pricing, Schifter wrote: ’The government is continuing its strong drive to enslave us with low wages and extreme fines. It’s a nightmare.’
Neil Weiss, a friend of Schifter’s and the owner of Black Car News, said Schifter had been struggling to pay bills and moved in with extended family in Pennsylvania. He said his pal had texted him about 90 minutes before he killed himself that he was ’making it count’.
’I worked 100-120 consecutive hours almost every week for the past fourteen years. I am not a Slave and I refuse to be one’, the 61-year-old driver wrote on his Facebook page
According to taxi and limousine records, Schifter had driver livery cabs, black cars and limousines since the early 1980s
Weiss told the New York Post that he assumed Schifter’s cryptic message was in reference to the Facebook post his friend shared earlier on Monday.
’Obviously, that’s not what he meant,’ he said.
’He was a really sweet guy. His life had just gotten destroyed by the way the transportation industry had been going in New York City. There’s been some very significant adjustments in the past few years.’
According to Weiss, Schifter complained for years that the change in their industry - which saw an increase in drivers and the introduction of ride-sharing services like Lyft and Uber - was ’hurting a lot of people’.
’There’s been a lot of changes in the transportation industry in New York City over the past bunch of years and not for the better,’ Weiss said. ’I was hoping he was getting things together.’
Taxi and limousine records show that Schifter had driven livery cabs, black cars and limousines since the early 1980s.
