I’ll give North Carolina state Rep. Zack Hawkins a little bit of credit for wanting to do something about the safety of rideshare drivers after an Uber driver was shot and killed in his vehicle last year. Unfortunately, what Hawkins is pushing for won’t improve driver safety in the slightest, and he’s ignoring the most obvious policy change that would make a difference: requiring Uber, Lyft, and other rideshare companies to allow contractors to lawfully carry a firearm in their vehicle when they’re on the job.
Instead, Hawkins wants to mandate the reporting of criminal incidents during rides as well as incentivizing drivers to put cameras inside their cars. At best that might help police develop leads after a crime has been committed, but it’s not going to do a damn thing to stop an assault, carjacking, armed robbery, or homicide.
Emmanuel Kwame Gbedee, a 57-year-old Uber driver, was found fatally shot in the back seat of his car in Johnston County in January 2025. Tray’vian Tre’vel Brown of Dunn was arrested days later and charged with first-degree murder and robbery with a dangerous weapon. His charges were temporarily dismissed in September 2025 after a judge ruled that he could not stand trial because of “mental illness or defect,” The News & Observer previously reported.
… Hawkins on Tuesday said at a press conference that Gbedee’s “loss is a painful reminder that gun violence continues to impact families and communities across our state.” “Rideshare drivers across North Carolina and across the country face growing safety risks every single day while they transport passengers,” he said. “No one should have to risk their life simply for going to work.”
I completely agree with Hawkins that no one should have to risk their life just for going to work. That’s why he should be sponsoring a bill that tells companies like Uber and Lyft that if they want to do business in the state, they cannot prohibit contractors who can lawfully carry a firearm from doing so in their own vehicle while they’re on the clock. Uber and Lyft both have driver (and passenger) disarmament policies, and even if a driver acts in lawful self-defense they’re quickly booted off the app and told they can no longer serve as a contractor.
Hawkins said North Carolina has plenty of opportunities to improve rideshare safety. He said the rideshare companies’ mandatory reporting on incidents like “deaths, sexual assaults, robberies,” could “ensure that that type of data was collected from rideshare agencies.” He added that an incentive for rideshare companies to require recording what goes on inside the vehicle would also create a safer ride because the footage can be reviewed by the rideshare companies for video evidence.
Again, nothing that Hawkins is asking for would proactively improve driver safety. I’m not opposed to telling these companies they have to report violence incidents that happen during rides, but better data isn’t going to stop someone from robbing and killing a driver. And forcing drivers to put cameras in their vehicle while denying them the ability to have a gun with them is just adding insult to potential injury. No, they won’t let you defend yourself from an armed robber or a carjacker, but hopefully authorities can get a good look at their face so they can arrest the perpetrator after you’re dead.
Hawkins has identified a very real problem, but he’s failed to provide a real solution. If he believes the state can mandate rideshare companies provide reports to police about violent crimes or make contractors put cameras in their vehicles, then lawmakers clearly have the power to force Uber and Lyft to recognize the Second Amendment rights of drivers too. If Hawkins and his fellow Democrats won’t lift a finger to help these drivers defend themselves, then Republicans should lead the charge in restoring the right to carry for rideshare drivers next session.
Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.
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