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Waymo Is Suing People Who Allegedly Smashed and Slashed Its Robotaxis

24 points by ra7 2y ago

NullHypothesist 2y ago
I mean... what's the alternative? They just let people smash their vehicles without repercussion? I would certainly pursue legal action if someone slashed my tires while I was driving. Why would this be any different?
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
- psd1 2y ago
  Typically, you let the insurers duke it out; in some cases, the police get involved. There already exists legislation for property damage and unsafe driving. Indeed, the tyre-slasher is already subject to the criminal system.
leftbehind 2y ago
The Tesla owner in the article intentionally rammed his car repeatedly into a Waymo then publicly said Waymos kept hitting his car??? How stupid do you have to be to do this when both your vehicle AND the other vehicle continuously record at all times from every angle and stream it to the cloud?
- hu3 2y ago
  Also not smart to provoke a lawsuit from a company with infinite money and bored lawyers.
  - JumpCrisscross 2y ago
    > not smart to provoke a lawsuit It’s not smart to ram things with your car. That should frankly result in a licence suspension.
    - hu3 2y ago
      That is also not smart at all. And I agree with licence suspension.
- genocidicbunny 2y ago
  Yeah, but when it's a crime of passion like that, thinking goes out the window. I doubt the driver of the Tesla woke up in the morning and decided that today they were going to ram a Waymo. Really of you're going to mess with autonomous cars which by definition are a rolling camera, you gotta be more discreet. Sprinkle a few caltrops out your pant leg while you walk in front of it or something.
  - kazinator 2y ago
    > I doubt the driver of the Tesla woke up in the morning and decided that today they were going to ram a Waymo. Of course, not; probably more like, he fantasized about it for months, and it was a new version of some old fantasy he's been carrying carried since adolescence.
JumpCrisscross 2y ago
“Ronaile Burton, who allegedly slashed the tires of at least 19 Waymo vehicles. San Francisco prosecutors have filed criminal charges against her to which she has pleaded not guilty. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday. Burton’s public defender, Adam Birka-White, says in a statement that Burton ‘is someone in need of help and not jail’…” It sounds like they need both [1]. [1] https://www.thesfnews.com/ronaile-burton-arrested-in-serial-vandalism-case/91471 https://www.thesfnews.com/ronaile-burton-arrested-in-serial-...
- kazinator 2y ago
  She must have whored for attention on social media, because someone who has two brain cells to rub together and is motivated to inflict this kind of damage and get away with it, can pretty easily do so.
  - smcin 2y ago
    SFPD identifies them as male. Also, he was reportedly driving "a rental car that was past due... On June 26, the suspect vehicle [from all 20 slashings] was located on the 300 block of Bryant Street and the suspect was inside the vehicle. Burton slashed the tires on the suspect vehicle as well as the tires of the tow truck that had responded on behalf of the rental car company to seize the suspect vehicle. He then broke windows on both vehicles before vandalizing five occupied vehicles along the Embarcadero." I take it he's not gonna give the rental company 5 stars on Yelp?
qresf 2y ago
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24 points by ra7 2y ago

I mean... what's the alternative? They just let people smash their vehicles without repercussion? I would certainly pursue legal action if someone slashed my tires while I was driving. Why would this be any different?

deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
psd1 2y ago
Typically, you let the insurers duke it out; in some cases, the police get involved. There already exists legislation for property damage and unsafe driving. Indeed, the tyre-slasher is already subject to the criminal system.

leftbehind 2y ago

The Tesla owner in the article intentionally rammed his car repeatedly into a Waymo then publicly said Waymos kept hitting his car??? How stupid do you have to be to do this when both your vehicle AND the other vehicle continuously record at all times from every angle and stream it to the cloud?

hu3 2y ago
Also not smart to provoke a lawsuit from a company with infinite money and bored lawyers.
- JumpCrisscross 2y ago
  > not smart to provoke a lawsuit It’s not smart to ram things with your car. That should frankly result in a licence suspension.
  - hu3 2y ago
    That is also not smart at all. And I agree with licence suspension.
genocidicbunny 2y ago
Yeah, but when it's a crime of passion like that, thinking goes out the window. I doubt the driver of the Tesla woke up in the morning and decided that today they were going to ram a Waymo. Really of you're going to mess with autonomous cars which by definition are a rolling camera, you gotta be more discreet. Sprinkle a few caltrops out your pant leg while you walk in front of it or something.
- kazinator 2y ago
  > I doubt the driver of the Tesla woke up in the morning and decided that today they were going to ram a Waymo. Of course, not; probably more like, he fantasized about it for months, and it was a new version of some old fantasy he's been carrying carried since adolescence.

JumpCrisscross 2y ago

“Ronaile Burton, who allegedly slashed the tires of at least 19 Waymo vehicles. San Francisco prosecutors have filed criminal charges against her to which she has pleaded not guilty. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday. Burton’s public defender, Adam Birka-White, says in a statement that Burton ‘is someone in need of help and not jail’…” It sounds like they need both [1]. [1] https://www.thesfnews.com/ronaile-burton-arrested-in-serial-vandalism-case/91471 https://www.thesfnews.com/ronaile-burton-arrested-in-serial-...

kazinator 2y ago
She must have whored for attention on social media, because someone who has two brain cells to rub together and is motivated to inflict this kind of damage and get away with it, can pretty easily do so.
- smcin 2y ago
  SFPD identifies them as male. Also, he was reportedly driving "a rental car that was past due... On June 26, the suspect vehicle [from all 20 slashings] was located on the 300 block of Bryant Street and the suspect was inside the vehicle. Burton slashed the tires on the suspect vehicle as well as the tires of the tow truck that had responded on behalf of the rental car company to seize the suspect vehicle. He then broke windows on both vehicles before vandalizing five occupied vehicles along the Embarcadero." I take it he's not gonna give the rental company 5 stars on Yelp?

qresf 2y ago

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