The parents of a 14-year-old who claims to have been recorded by a male flight attendant on an American Airlines flight filed suit against the Fort Worth-based air carrier and the flight attendant.
On Friday, attorneys representing the North Carolina family filed the lawsuit in federal court in the Western District of North Carolina. The complaint says the 14-year-old girl has suffered severe emotional distress and damages as a result of the incident.
“We brought this lawsuit to hold American Airlines and the flight attendant responsible for what happened to our daughter,” the parents said in an emailed statement. ”In the three months since the incident happened, no one from American Airlines has even bothered to reach out or check on our daughter’s well-being. This must never be allowed to happen again.”
On Sept. 2, the family was aboard American Airlines Flight 1441 from Charlotte to Boston when a flight attendant directed their daughter to use a first-class bathroom instead of the coach bathroom, where the family was sitting, according to the parents, according to the lawsuit and an interview with the parents. The male flight attendant had entered just before her to “wash his hands,” according to the parents, and told her the seat was broken, but still usable.
However, after using the toilet, the 14-year-old discovered the cell phone camera affixed to the seat with stickers only crew members had access to. She took a photo of it on her phone. She told her parents about the situation when she returned to her seat.
Because of the nature of the incident, The Dallas Morning News is not naming the parents or the child. The family’s boarding passes for the flight were confirmed by The News.
“We take this matter very seriously and have been fully cooperating with law enforcement in their investigation, as safety and security are our highest priorities,” an American Airlines spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
The flight attendant was immediately withheld from service and hasn’t worked since, according to American.
According to the complaint, the father of the minor demanded the male flight attendant show him his phone but didn’t follow him to go get it, allowing time for the flight attendant the potential opportunity to delete anything.
The family is seeking six claims for relief: invasion of privacy, civil liability for criminal act of secretly peeping, intentional infliction of emotional distress against the flight attendant; and negligence, negligent hiring, supervision or retention and negligent infliction of emotional distress against American Airlines.
