by Aaron Wilson
October 23, 02009
The cab driver who was allegedly assaulted by Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib has given a detailed interview about the incident.
David Duggan accused Talib of striking him while he was driving Talib, cornerback Torrie Cox and linebacker Angelo Crowell.
And Talib was charged with misdemeanor simple battery on Thursday.
Duggan told JoeBucsFan.com that he is glad Talib was charged and plans to file a civil lawsuit against the NFL player.
“It’s about time,” Duggan said. "I feel good about everything. I’m looking forward to telling the judge what happened, that just all of a sudden this guy hit me in the back of the head while I’m driving down the highway at 70 miles per hour. It felt like a hammer.
"This is the first time I’ve been a victim. The guy needs to pay, in court and out of his pocket. You can’t go around hitting cab drivers. I only remember him hitting me once. I got like a concussion, fluid in one ear and blood in another. I’ve had headaches since then. I’m unable to work. I’ve got injuries to my neck and I go to therapy twice a week."
Duggan said that he's infuriated at Talib.
"I gets me angry," he said. "You know, you give these young guys millions of dollars and they think they own the world. You can’t go around smashing people upside the head. They need to keep that play on the field. I don’t care what sport it is. He’s never apologized. I don’t know if the guy’s even sorry.
"I wasn’t talking in the cab and there was no radio on, just the dispatch radio. Nobody was really saying anything. And then I got hit in the back of the head. I thought I was getting robbed. I had no idea when I picked these guys up that they were Buccaneers. I don’t follow the team. If I did I never would have collected the $50 fare up front. I would have waited and hoped I got a $100 tip."
Duggan said that Cox intervened on his behalf.
“Torrie Cox in the back seat, if he didn’t grab Talib he probably would have hit me again," he said. "I swerved. Crowell sitting next to me put his arm up by my head like to protect me.
"And he yelled, ‘Hey man, what are you trying to do, kill us?' Shit, Cox and Crowell didn’t want any part of Talib then, and then when the police got there. The guy needs to learn his lesson.”
Talib made the trip to London with the Buccaneers and is slated to start Sunday against the New England Patriots.
Follow me on Twitter: RavensInsider