SAN DIEGO — On October 6, a woman known as "Jane Doe" hailed a ride on Uber. She had to go from Alpine to meet a friend in El Cajon and then back to Alpine.
While getting inside a Toyota Corolla, the passenger says she had no idea about the driver's violent criminal past.
The driver, now identified as Michael Marcus Jordan, 43, has been been convicted twice of felony assaults with a deadly weapon.
Nor did Jane know about the rape he had allegedly committed just nine months prior to her ride that night.
Having been sexually assaulted in the past, Jane says she prefers Uber over other rideshare companies because the company says it conducts a multi-step screening process for potential drivers. Jane's identity is protected because she is a sexual assault victim.
However, on that night, Jane, according to a recently published safety report from the ride-share company, would become just one of 3,824 people who reported sexual assault and misconduct by its drivers in 2020.
The Assault
Jane, who suffers from epilepsy, says everything was fine during her ride from Alpine to El Cajon. She met her friend at a convenience store to pick something up and even stopped by the ATM on the way. All without any cause for concern.
On her way back to Alpine, she fell asleep in the back seat.
She says she woke up to Jordan's hands underneath her skirt.
"I noticed his hand, his right arm coming and putting it on my knee. 34 he was starting to slide his hand up in between my skirt in between my thighs and I pretended to be asleep for a little bit longer. I felt like what am I going to do right now," Jane tells CBS 8.
"I kept my eyes closed for a second, trying to figure out what to do. He was huge, probably the biggest man I have ever seen," said Jane.
According to a description from the San Diego County Jail website, Jordan is listed as 6-foot-9-inches tall.
"He could reach me in the backseat of the car while driving with one arm."
Jane says managed to get her phone out as Jordan exposed himself, and began to record the assault. He quickly smacked the phone out of her hand.
There was nowhere for her to go. Because of his height, Jordan, she says, was practically in the seat next to her.
"I couldn’t understand why this was happening to me," she said. "When he started groping me I felt absolute panic and I realized that I was stuck in this very small, very confined space with this man who is practically driving in the backseat."
Despite Jane's struggles, Jordan continued to grope her, clawing at her thighs and tearing her underwear off. Jane says Jordan exposed himself. She grabbed a small knife she had on her but he snatched it away from her and threw it out of the window.
"He was still driving and I was trying to wrestle him. He kept fighting me, he choked me, elbowed me into my stomach [while he assaulted me]."
Jane says Jordan pulled onto the shoulder.
"I thought this is the moment he is going to kill me. He was so angry. I just remember thinking that I was going to die right then."
Jane says she managed to open the car door and she began climbing out of the back seat when Jordan sped off, injuring her as he sped away.
Jane flagged down another driver and called the police.
"He was everywhere," Jane said, recalling the night.
"I have nightmares. I can’t take car rides, I can’t live like a normal person. I can’t sleep my seizures are worse, I can’t keep a job."
On Tuesday, October 4, the San Diego County District Attorney's Office charged Jordan with three felony counts in the October 2020 assault including sexual assault, robbery, and attempted oral copulation by threat.
But that wasn't all.
Jordan faces other charges as well. According to a criminal complaint obtained by CBS 8, Jordan is accused of raping another woman in January of 2020 as well as three other violent sexual assault charges.
But that wasn't all.
Jordan also has been charged with a felony rape count to a third woman in July 2021.
The criminal complaint shows that Jordan is now facing his third criminal strike against him, having been convicted on two separate occasions of felony assault with a deadly weapon, one in June of 2002 and another in May of 2006.
A spokesperson for the company says Uber works diligently to address sex assault accusations against its drivers and ensure the safety of its passengers.
“The experience described by the rider is terrifying and we banned the driver as soon as we became aware of the incident. We cooperated with police on their investigation," reads the company's statement to CBS 8.
According to Uber, Jordan signed up as a driver in October 2019, prior to any of the subsequent sex assault charges. As with all of its drivers, Uber says it conducted a criminal background check for the seven years prior to him becoming a driver and Jordan passed.
The company says it has a team of former law enforcement officers who work around the clock to respond to and investigate any reports of sexual assault. In addition, the company has implemented a number of safety features with the goal of boosting the safety of passengers. Those measures include placing an emergency button on the app to allow riders to alert police during an assault. The company says it also has set up a victim relief hotline and fund and provides counseling for victims."
Added the spokesperson, “We take reports of sexual assault seriously. While we can’t comment on pending litigation, we can say that we prioritize safety which is why we invest in building in-app safety features, like the emergency button, into the platform. We continue to look for ways to improve safety on the platform.”
However, Jane's attorney, Dan Gilleon says Uber needs to do more to ensure the safety of passengers and the only way to do that is for more victims to come forward.
"It would be nice if Uber decides to upgrade their background searches," says Gilleon. "In reality, it's going to come down to more women coming forward, and reporting these assaults and not being ashamed or thinking that they did something wrong. For a company that makes a huge amount of money on a skeleton crew, hurting their bottom line is the only thing that will bring change."
Meanwhile, Jane says she wants more but first and foremost she wants to know that Jordan is not able to hurt anyone else.
"I’m hoping he won’t be able to hurt anyone else," while hoping Uber reaches out to her for help in healing. "I hope they acknowledge they made a mistake and they were wrong. I want acknowledgment and I want to be able to move on with my life and heal."
WATCH RELATED: New data shows less than 11 percent of sexual assaults in San Diego result in arrests