A London woman who survived breast cancer isn’t faring so well against city bylaw officers who fined her $2,260 for providing a service to patients that medical staff say is invaluable.
For more than three years, the woman has been a regular at an outpatient clinic at St. Joseph’s Hospital, providing rides to and from the clinic to patients who aren’t allowed to drive after being sedated for procedures such as endoscopies and colonoscopies.
She refused tips, at first charged only $10 round trip, an amount to cover the costs of gas and maintenance, her work so appreciated by medical staff that many consider her a critical volunteer. She offers to get patients safely situated at home, rather than drop them off at the curb.
But years of good deeds may have come to an end after bylaw officers arranged a sting operation Feb. 15: An enforcement officer called her for a ride, saying he was a patient getting a colonoscopy; she even providing words of reassurance on the ride to the hospital. But after he paid her, another enforcement officer ran over and issued her two tickets for owning and operating a vehicle for hire without a licence.
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