Car-hailing service Uber asked a U.S. court to drop all charges related to the alleged rape of a woman by an Uber driver in India, reports Reuters.
“While Plaintiff undoubtedly can state a claim against her alleged assailant, she cannot state a claim against Uber U.S., which is the wrong party,” argued Uber in the filing, which was done on Monday. “Nor does California law govern a dispute involving an alleged wrong committed by one Indian citizen against another Indian citizen, in India.”
In short, Uber argued that the company as a whole should not be held responsible for the actions of one of its drivers. In addition, the company argues California law has no say when it comes to a crime that took place overseas.
The alleged rape victim’s attorney, Douglas Wigdor, sees things a little differently. “The motion is yet another attempt at deflecting responsibility and we are confident that Uber will ultimately be held accountable for its actions,” said the attorney.
The rape allegedly occurred last December, when the victim reported being raped and beaten by an Uber driver. She sued the company in a U.S. federal court in January, arguing that Uber completely failed when it came to maintaining basic safety procedures.
In the last year alone, Uber has been dogged by numerous controversies, including two rape cases in Boston and Chicago, and a sexual harassment case in London. Rape charges against a Chicago Uber driver were dropped on Monday, while the Uber driver involved in the London sexual harassment case was fired.
Uber is currently fighting back against Germany, France, and Spain, three countries which banned the car-hailing service from operating within their borders. Unfortunately for Uber, its battles seem to also include the Web, as there appear to be stolen Uber accounts being sold for $1 a pop.
Maybe it’s these troubles that led the company to hire its first security chief.
