Penalties for Muslim Cabbies who refuse fares

Good news for travelers, bad news for 7th century goatherders now driving cabs in Mpls-St Paul.

MAC OKs Penalties For Cabbies Who Refuse Fares
(AP) Minneapolis The operator of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Monday approved tougher penalties for cabdrivers who refuse service to travelers carrying alcohol, as some Muslim drivers have done for religious reasons. The Metropolitan Airports Commission voted to suspend a driver's airport taxi license for 30 days for the first offense and revoke it for two years for a second offense. The new penalties take effect May 11.Airport officials say more than 70 percent of the cabbies at the airport are Muslim, and many of them claim Islamic law prohibits them from giving rides to people carrying alcohol.

Airport officials said that since January 2002, there have been more than 4,800 instances of a driver refusing service because a customer possessed, or was suspected of possessing, alcohol.