Why does the article criticise taking the passenger back to the car?

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The article criticises taking the passenger back to the car because the driver’s duty was to keep her safe, not to escalate sexual activity and then leave her vulnerable.

The article says the driver’s job was to take the 19-year-old passenger home, and when she struggled to enter her residence, his responsibility should have been to ensure her safety rather than bringing her back into his car and engaging in sexual acts. It argues that she was visibly upset, frustrated, and unable to access her home when he helped her back into his car, after which other sexual activity followed. It also points to the fact that she was later found unconscious on the road without any underwear, while he had already known she could not enter her home.
The driver’s role created a clear safety duty at the destination
The passenger was taking Grab home after drinking, and the incident occurred when she could not find the access card to her residence. When the driver realised she was struggling, the article frames his action as a moment where the appropriate duty was to manage her immediate safety situation. Instead of doing so, it describes him helping her back into his car and then engaging in sexual activity.
The criticism focuses on escalating sexual acts with a visibly distressed passenger
The article describes the passenger as visibly upset and frustrated at the point she was unable to enter her residence. It states the driver claimed he tried to calm her by holding her hand, after which she started kissing him and further sexual activity followed. The column’s central point is that a driver should not make advances or proceed with sexual acts when the passenger is visibly intoxicated and distressed.
The driver left her vulnerable after attempting more sexual activity
After the initial sexual activity, the driver is described as driving the woman to another location and attempting to engage in more sexual activity before eventually dropping her back at her residence. The article emphasises that she was found hours later unconscious on the road without any underwear. It treats this outcome as evidence that taking her back to the car and then leaving her unattended was incompatible with a safety-focused duty.
The power imbalance and the difficulty of consent are treated as relevant
The article highlights that the driver was in his 40s, more than 20 years older than the 19-year-old passenger, and married. It argues that, even if the question of whether she was drunk enough to consent is difficult to determine, the driver was a sober adult in a role where he had to reject advances and ensure her safety. It also stresses that his contact with her came from his job as her driver, with a clearly defined function of transporting her home.

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Why does the article criticise taking the passenger back to the car?

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