Austin Man Admits To Doing Something Illegal To His Date. Then His Uber Driver Overhears Him

An Austin Uber driver is going viral on TikTok after sharing a backseat conversation he says left him stunned—and potentially listening to a crime confession unfold in real time.

Shawn (@shawntv96), a longtime Austin-based Uber driver who regularly posts about the wild things he overhears on the job, recounted the moment in a recent video. Throughout the clip, he carefully couches his retelling with words like “hypothetically” and “allegedly,” seemingly aware of the legal gray area he was navigating.

The video centers on a New Year’s ride and a conversation between two passengers that Shawn says quickly crossed from awkward into alarming. As of this writing, the clip has racked up more than 10,800 views.

What Did The Austin Uber Passengers Say?

According to Shawn, the conversation involved a man whose name rhymes with “leg” and a friend as they rode together, reminiscing about their New Year’s celebrations and the women they had been seeing.

“On New Year’s, they went out with these girls,” Shawn explained.
Speaking hypothetically, Shawn says one of the men asked his friend whether he “had fun” with the woman he’d been seeing. The friend replied that he did, then tossed the question back.

“And this friend says, yes, we did, and we slept together—hypothetically, of course,” Shawn says. That’s when the conversation took a darker turn. Shawn says the man admitted he hadn’t told the woman he slept with that he had “the clap,” also known as gonorrhea, before they hooked up.
Shawn says the man claimed he “felt bad afterward.”

At that point, Shawn says he stepped in, telling the passenger that failing to disclose an STD before sex could be a crime.

“I’m actually positive that’s a crime,” Shawn recalls saying. The warning didn’t land. Shawn says the men laughed it off and brushed aside the idea that the culprit could face consequences.
Shawn ended the video with a blunt PSA aimed at Austin women. “Hypothetically, if you went out with a man whose name rhymes with ‘leg’ on New Year’s and then you slept with him, and you live in Austin, Texas, I feel bad for you, girl,” he said.

Is It Illegal to Knowingly Give Someone an STD?

It can be, even if no statute explicitly states you must disclose you have an STD or STI—including gonorrhea, often referred to as “the clap”—before sex.

According to one Texas-based law firm, the state’s law focuses less on the diagnosis itself and more on what happens next. Knowingly exposing someone to an STD and transmitting it without their consent can open the door to criminal charges, as some have found out the hard way.

Prosecutors have brought these cases under assault laws, which make it a crime to intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly cause bodily harm. In some situations, infected bodily fluids have been treated as a deadly weapon. And if the transmission results in “serious bodily injury,” the crime then potentially becomes a case of aggravated assault—or even attempted murder—depending on intent and outcome.

That is especially true when someone knows they are infected and goes out of their way not to say anything to their sexual partner. Of course, if your partner is informed of the risk and consents to having unprotected sex, that’s a whole other story.

What’s more, criminal charges are not the only risk. Someone who contracts an STD after not being warned can also sue in civil court, where claims can include negligence, fraud, or intentional misconduct.

In general, though, the law is far less forgiving about transmission without consent than it is about the infection itself. So, being upfront is not only the most ethical thing to do, but it’s also what guarantees some level of legal protection.

Commenters Can’t Believe Man’s Audacity

Viewers who watched Shawn’s story were stunned by the ride experience he shared, with many expressing disgust at the passengers he drove.

“I strongly dislike some people smh,” one woman wrote.

“Wow, this is horrible!!” said another.

“What the hell is wrong with these people,” added a third.

Some commenters also applauded Shawn, who said he reported the customer to Uber, for bringing the story to light.

“You are a hero amongst men,” one person said.

“I love that you chimed in! You’re a good one,” wrote another.

“TY for being for the girls,” added a third.

A few viewers offered their own legal theories, questioning whether the man’s actions were actually illegal. While commenters agreed the actions were disturbing, they weren’t all sure if the law would hold.

“Texas citizen here, and yes, Assault, Class A Misdemeanor,” one woman claimed.

“It is considered a form of assault in Texas, and people have gone to jail for it in the past,” another noted.

But some weren’t so certain.

“I think only permanent STDs are illegal,” one person wrote.

Patch has reached out to Shawn via a direct message on TikTok and to Uber via email.