Dragged United Airlines Passenger Retains Lawyer

By now, you’ve probably seen the upsetting viral video of a man being forcibly removed (dragged) from his purchased seat on a United Airlines flight. As our Delray Beach personal injury lawyers at Aronberg & Aronberg know, the man sustained injuries after he was yanked off a flight on which he had properly booked a seat. Now, United Airlines and others may soon have to answer for this PR nightmare in a court of law.

The man who was pushed and pulled off the plane, with blood coming from his ear and mouth, was 69-year-old Dr. David Dao. Dao was selected for removal from the flight through no fault of his own. His only misstep was purchasing a ticket on that flight. As our personal injury lawyers know, United will argue that Dr. Dao’s mistake was not obeying the order to get off the plane. Of course, it is quite likely that this case will settle well before trial. United will probably try to keep this from getting any more publicity than it has already garnered.

What caused the screw-up on that United flight? United, like most airlines, routinely overbooks flights expecting that a certain percentage of ticketed customers just won’t show. Airlines don’t like to fly planes with empty seats. Simply put, empty seats on a flying airplane = lost revenue. On this flight, United wanted to cram in some employees to get them to another location, and they wanted to put one of the employees in Dr. Dao’s seat. After unsuccessfully requesting that Dao leave the plane, the airline called in officers to forcibly remove him.

Dr. Dao has now, rightfully, retained an attorney who says that there will probably be a lawsuit over this case. Potential defendants include United (on whose plane the terrible events took place and whose policy allowed for it to happen) and local Chicago police who actually removed Dao from the plane. In addition to the inconvenience and humiliation of being pulled off a plane he had a ticket for, Dao suffered a broken nose and a significant concussion in the scuffle. He also lost two front teeth and was hospitalized.

Passengers should feel confident that when they purchase an airline ticket, go through security, board the plane, and sit in their seat, they will get to their destination. As our personal injury lawyers know, customers should not have to worry about being assaulted and attacked and forced off a flight just so that the airline can boost its bottom line.

Much has been made about Dr. Dao’s past, sordid legal problems. Is Dr. Dao the model of a squeaky-clean citizen? Absolutely not. But do his past indiscretions make him a deserving target of assault, battery, and humiliation? Certainly not. Nobody deserves to be treated the way Dr. Dao was treated, and we hope his lawyers obtain justice for him and his family.

If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident caused by the negligence or recklessness of another, please contact our experienced Delray Beach personal injury lawyers at Aronberg & Aronberg by calling 561-266-9191 or by e-mailing us at daronberg@build.simple.biz. Please reach out to us to set up a free consultation. We look forward to assisting you.

Views: 0