Atlanta sports reporter pushes back on Uber driver’s claims about car fight

Smith’s videos have racked up millions of views. Online commenters have responded with outrage toward Turner over the incident.

In one video posted to her 50,000 TikTok followers, Smith said Turner injured her eye, which needed stitches.

“In what world is it ever acceptable to sit in a stranger’s car and then try to insinuate that you feel threatened after refusing to leave?” Smith said in the video that has amassed 2 million views as of Wednesday afternoon.

Turner and her attorney Miguel Dominguez spoke at a news conference Wednesday, with Turner saying the backlash has impacted her job. People from social media have contacted her employers, disrupted her work, questioned her character and threatened her life, she said.

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com

“They flooded my social media with threats. They’ve reached out to people I work with and work for‚” Turner said. “I didn’t ask for this.”

Representatives for the basketball franchises declined to comment on the pending legal situation. Turner said she has received support from those she works with due to the situation.

Smith did not respond to requests for comment. Jail records show she has not been arrested.

Last Saturday afternoon, Turner was picked up from the airport via Uber and had requested a Comfort-level ride with air conditioning, her attorney Dominguez said.

But Smith’s car did not appear to be an Uber Comfort, the air conditioning was not running, and the windows were cracked on the hot summer afternoon, Dominguez said. When Turner requested that the air be turned on and the windows rolled up, the driver turned on the air but did not close the windows, he said.

The two argued before Smith pulled over on I-85 near an exit ramp and told Turner to get out of the car, according to the Hapeville police report provided by Turner’s attorney.

Dominguez said Turner did not get out of the car because it was a busy highway and told the driver to either take her home or back to the airport, or refund her money and call the police.

In the police report, Smith told police Turner began hitting her from the backseat, so she turned around and sprayed her with pepper spray.

But Turner and her attorney say a video Turner captured of the incident, which they provided to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, shows the two arguing verbally before Smith sprayed her with pepper spray.

After the responding police officer, Detective Stephen Cushing, reviewed Turner’s video, he determined Smith was the aggressor, according to the police report, and filed for her arrest for misdemeanor battery charges, which are still pending.

Turner is not facing charges in the incident, Cushing confirmed to the AJC.

“It is apparent that Smith was the primary aggressor as she swung and struck” Turner and then “used a non-deadly weapon,” the police report says. Cushing determined Smith’s injuries were caused by Turner in self-defense.

Turner’s hair was pulled out and her left arm was injured, she and her attorney said. But the emotional toll of the public backlash has added “insult to physical injuries” her attorney said.

Both Turner and Smith have been removed from the Uber app while the company investigates the incident, an Uber spokesperson said in a statement provided to the AJC. Turner said she was refunded for the trip.

“Safety is fundamental to the Uber experience, and conduct like this is not tolerated,” the company said.