Judge denies Uber's attempt to stop CEO from testifying in Georgia sex trafficking lawsuit
A Georgia judge has ruled that Uber's CEO has to testify in a lawsuit accusing the ride-hailing service of not doing enough to prevent the sex trafficking of a 14-year-old girl.
The lawsuit, filed on March 7, 2025, by an unidentified Georgia mother and daughter, claims the victim was picked up by an Uber at 1 a.m. without her parents' consent and was driven more than 30 miles away from her home to Jonesboro.
The Uber ride had been requested by Thomas Bonner, who the lawsuit says drugged and raped the teen over four days. Jail records show that Bonner remains in custody in Cobb County, charged with sodomy, aggravated child molestation, sexual battery under 18, enticing a child for indecent purposes, and statutory rape.
The teen's lawsuit argued that the company failed to train its drivers to recognize sex trafficking and stop incidents from happening, asking for damages, medical expenses, and other fees.
Uber had attempted to prohibit the deposition of its CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, arguing that he "lacks personal knowledge" related to the case and pointed to his demanding schedule.
However, Gwinnett County Judge Emily J. Brantley ruled on July 6 that Khosrowshahi could know something that would lead to the discovery of evidence admissible in court.
The Court finds that Mr. Khosrowshahi likely has knowledge of Uber's awareness of the hazard of human trafficking, Uber's decisions and policy implementations made with that knowledge, Uber's investigations into incidents of sexual assault and sex trafficking, Uber's decisions on whether (and how) to warn the public, Uber's communications with certain Senators about sex trafficking in June 2023—sixteen months before the assault on Plaintiff, warnings Uber received from the FBI and other government entities/officials, and Uber's advertising and public relations decisions around sex/human trafficking," Brantley wrote in her order.
Brantley also noticed that the plaintiff's attorney had tried to get information from lower-level employees but was not able to.
The judge also denied Uber's request to reconsider her decision the next day.
CBS News Atlanta has reached out to Uber for a statement about the judge's ruling and will update this story if the company responds.
