1. Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority
YouTube ‘Uppercut’
Mary Shaffer

2. Timeline October 11: Video First posted on YouTube
First media calls that evening, talked with CEO
Viewed video, operator was suspended
October 12: My busiest day at RTA.
September 18: Actual incident date
Police report, 8 pages, witness statements
Never any mention of a punch by anyone

3. Posting of videos
Six videos, the first is the closest, second farther back (both added websites)
Operator Artis Hughes vs. customer Shi’dea Lane (see video one and two)
Created transcript of incident from the first video, in case of arbitration and lawsuits
Still see this video daily in Cleveland, hearing about the ‘infamous uppercut’

4. Public/Media Responses
How we heard from people
s, phone calls, FB posts and tweets
What were they angry about?
What did they do about it?

5. Media Relations What we did
Crafted a message: media statement, phone operators, facebook, twitter, s, general calls; kept track of comments/calls
Created a media/public information request spreadsheet
Pulled operator Artis Hughes file and info
Shared the redacted police report quickly

6. FB Page ‘Uppercut OG support’

7. FB ‘Shi’Dea Lane’ page

8. FB and Twitter Comments
Drivers should be armed with tasers!!!! She got what she deserved...old school
Something needs to be done about this level of disrespect shown by passengers. Everybody should be held to a high standard, customers included.
She started it and he finished it! Bout time someone shut these nasty little mouths up. She should be banned from RTA

9. More comments
I hope he presses charges for her hurting his hand. she totally got what she deserved. Act like a man, get knocked out like a man.
I will never agree that any man should hit a woman
You can ride the bus out of the hood, but you can't ride the hood out of the bus.

10. Follow Up News Reports Continuously using the same video
Searching: “Are operators safe on RTA? Is RTA doing enough to protect them? Is this common on RTA? What laws protect drivers/customers”
Fox 8 found a new ‘Shi’dea Lane’, who had retained a lawyer (see this video)
Customers continue to ask why Hughes would be fired (via /phone/sm)

11. Aftermath Hughes fired on November 6; silence Political events
City of Cleveland proposed stricter penalties for unruly customers
State lawmakers proposals
More uniformed and undercover officers riding the system daily

12. Aftermath (cont)
Legal changes – union vs. mgmt handling drivers for court
Discussions about safety, balancing safety messages for all
Lane and Hughes: Days in Court in March
No lawsuit against RTA at this time

13. Focus on Security
Safety & Security Committee - Board Committee; Labor/Mgmt Comittee
Testing two enclosure used elsewhere
Asking for operator feedback
Positive/negative
Feb 19 RTA Board approved $2.5 million in camera systems (upgrades and new cameras and recording devices)

14. Questions/Comments Thank you! Mary Shaffer 216.566.5211