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Focuses on the prevalence of cabdriver robbery in New York, New York. Impact of the death of driver Manuel Lopez on efforts to stop the crime; Appeal of the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers; Importance of partitions in ensuring the safety of the drivers.

A taxi driver accused of cheating passengers in one of New York City's largest cab frauds was returned to the city Tuesday after being arrested in Kansas City, Mo., three weeks ago. The driver, Wasim Khalid Cheema, faces charges of scheming to defraud more than 2,500 riders of nearly $12,000. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is nowhere to hide, no cover at all, for the cabdriver who finds himself at gunpoint in his own car. The same tools and tricks that keep the driver safe on the streets -- the seat belt, the locked door -- now leave him trapped and as exposed as if splayed and nailed to a target. ''He started to shoot my legs first,'' said Trevor Bell, 53, flat on his back in a hospital bed, staring up at the ceiling and wincing as much at the remembered pain as at the betrayal that brought it. He had invited this passenger into his livery on Dec. 3, even letting the man sit up in the front seat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sheikh Sackor has been a livery cabdriver for three years in New York City. And although he has never been robbed or seriously threatened by a passenger, he is aware of how his job can make him susceptible to crime: He picks up strangers, carries cash and drives with his back to his passengers. On Monday, Mr. Sackor was one of hundreds of livery and yellow taxi drivers who registered in a program that allows police officers to stop and search their vehicles at any time, a measure that he and many others hope will be a deterrent after two drivers in New York City and one in Yonkers were fatally shot in the last two weeks. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Reports on the fatal shooting of Long Island cabdriver Ramon Jarpa while on the job in Roslyn Heights, Nassau County during an attack by robbers on October 9, 2002.

Reports that Jeff Ratanaburi was arrested using digital cameras after he and another man were identified as suspects in a robbery on September 23, 2000. Amount of money allocated by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani to reimburse livery drivers for installing partitions or cameras; Total number of digital cameras installed in livery cabs.

Presents news briefs from New York City, New York as of May 7, 2000. Robbery of three livery-cab drivers in Brooklyn and Queens; Arrest of more than 300 protesters at a marijuana march held on May 6, 2000.

Reports that Yovanny Grullon, a livery-cab driver in New York City, New York, was shot while chasing a suspected robber on April 30, 2000. Injuries sustained by Grullon; Details on the robbing incident; How the suspect was arrested.

Reports that on August 16, 1997, a taxi driver who was not identified by police fought off three attackers who robbed and stabbed him in the head in Meriden, Connecticut. Circumstances relating to the incident; Information on the recovery of most of the stolen money; Suspect that was charged in the incident; Reference to two other suspects being sought by police.

Discusses the large number of New York City cabdrivers killed--186 in the last five years. The likelihood of being killed; Average take of $75 in a livery cab robbery; The incalculable loss to victims' families, who are almost always poor immigrants; Examples.