Atef Bandary v. Delta Air Lines Inc.
Published: Nov. 26, 2021 | Result Date: Oct. 15, 2021 | Filing Date: May 26, 2017 |Case number: 5:17-cv-01065-DSF-AS Verdict – $7,225,000
Judge
Court
CD CA
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Zein E. Obagi Jr.
(Obagi Law Group PC)
Defendant
Richard G. Grotch
(Coddington, Hicks & Danforth APC)
Timothy J. Ryan
(The Ryan Law Group)
Facts
Atef Bandary is an Egyptian-American man who had been granted asylum in the U.S. following the threat of persecution for being gay in Egypt in the '90s. On the leg of an international itinerary, while traveling between ATL and SLC, he complained to Delta Air Lines about poor customer service, namely, refusal to give him food or water so he could take medicine. A flight attendant made it up to him by giving him a free bottle of wine and then sold him four more during the first 2.5 hours of the flight. Due to that and his medical condition, he had to use the restroom often. After he took a picture of the flight attendant who initially refused him service, he was reported to the lead flight attendant. She called the pilots who checked with Atlanta HQ and cleared the man. They informed the LFA of the passenger's name. When he was standing in line to relieve his diarrhea, the Lead Flight Attendant approached him, identified him by his name--which flight attendants do not ordinarily have--and directed him to return to the seat for the remainder of the flight, which was about 40 minutes more. He asked if he could use the restroom, which he was denied, and then became defensive. The LFA got in his face and escalated the situation. He backed up, fell on the ground, and then then started crying. He exclaimed that he was not a terrorist and called out for his partner who was on the flight. He was surrounded by passengers and crew in the back galley. Eventually, he got up and was cuffed by a law enforcement officer and the LFA, but the cuffs were put on too tightly. They were cut off, cutting him and reapplied. During that time, his pants fell to the floor and he was wearing no underwear. He was exposed for a prolonged period. He also defecated in his pants. When the plane landed, he was pulled off by Salt Lake City Police and then prosecuted for interfering with flight operations by the U.S. Attorney's Office. A forensic psychologist testified that, as a result of the tight cuffing in the context in which it occurred, he would require 5 years of intensive psychotherapy sessions 3 times a week.
Result
Verdict initially found $12,000 and $1,500,000 with a 15% contributory negligence finding after deliberating on special verdict form with a typo that produced the double verdict. The parties stipulated and the court ordered the resubmission of the verdict on a corrected form. After redeliberating, the jury returned a verdict of $8,500,000, $2.5 million of which was for personal injury and $6 million of which was for emotional distress caused by bodily injury, with a finding of 15% contributory negligence or wrongful conduct by plaintiff.
Deliberation
1.5 days
Length
2.5 days
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