Photo by Sarah Anne Hughes.

A driver who was denied the right to speak at a D.C. Taxicab Commission hearing because he did not have a written statement will receive a $5,500 settlement from the city.

Bereket Yetbarck was told at a November meeting that he could not speak without written testimony, although the DCTC “may elect to waive the condition,” a spokesman said at the time. Paul Cohn, a Commission member, later told a woman questioning why Yetbarck couldn’t speak, “The reason we are asking for written testimony is because a lot of our cab drivers have difficulty with our language. It’s very difficult for us to understand some of the people that testify.”

A second driver was allowed to testify without a written statement, with Cohn explaining that the driver had appeared before the Commission before: “We do understand you.”

With help from the Teamsters supported D.C. Taxi Operators Association, Yetbarck filed a suit against DCTC for violating a part of the District of Columbia Human Rights Act. The driver settled with DCTC to the tune of $5,500, $1,500 of which will go toward legal fees.

The settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing by DCTC, whose spokesperson did not immediately respond for comment.

“Nothing in this agreement is an admission of liability, duty, or wrongdoing by any party
or an admission that any policy, practice, or procedure of Defendant, its officers.
officials, employees, agents, and servants, at any time or in any way violated federal or
District of Columbia law,” the settlement reads. “Defendant denies all liability and any and all factual claims asserted by Plaintiff in the lawsuit.”

Here’s video of the incident. Read the settlement here [PDF].