In 2019 legendary West Coast rapper Ice-T admitted that he almost shot an Amazon Flex delivery driver who was not dressed in a traditional uniform. This quickly prompted the star to reach out to the e-commerce company suggesting they make a change to avoid what could’ve been a fatal accident. A new policy was ultimately implemented, and now the rapper-turned-actor wants his credit.
The “Law and Order: SVU” star returned to Twitter on Thursday, Dec. 15, where he recalled the infamous 2019 note: “Message To Amazon: Now that you have regular people making your home deliveries.. Maybe they should wear a Vest with AMAZON DELIVERY on it….. I almost shot a MF creeping up to my crib last night…. Just sayin.”
In a post with the previous message attached, the 64-year-old jogged fans’ memory by writing, “Remember THIS tweet? Amazon actually changed their protocols after this….”
It’s unclear how much influence the “New Jack City” star had on any change in policy, if there has been any. However, the company’s customer service Twitter account responded to Ice-T’s 2019 post asking for more details on the matter, noting that they would “escalate this to our Logistics Team for review” and that “we’ll be in touch with you soon!”
Furthermore, according to CNET, Amazon’s then-senior president of worldwide operations responded to Ice-T from his personal account, which has since been deleted.
“Just sayin…thanks for the suggestion,” Dave Clark wrote in May 2019. “We MF’ing love you and our drivers. Lots of innovations coming on this and many that already exist to help you track your package and delivery on a map. Thanks for being a customer.”
At the time of the initial incident, Amazon had implemented a program called Amazon Flex that paid independent contractors between $18-$25 an hour to deliver packages during their own business hours, according to the description on the official website. This allowed them to wear their own clothing. Amazon’s current Flex driver guidelines about uniforms read: “Reflective vest for visibility. (Amazon Flex-branded driver’s vests are an optional item to help you build trust and safety in the community, while also increasing your visibility when you are delivering. These vests are available at delivery stations at no cost to you.)”
Despite the questions surrounding Ice-T’s actual involvement, fans of the New Jersey emcee were happy to give the star his credit, including one social media supporter who joked, “Leave it to Ice T for a situation like this and make a positive change in policy for a massive company like Amazon.”
