American Airlines is under fire for its legal team’s response to a civil lawsuit against the company and one of its flight attendants, accused of secretly recording five girls in the plane’s bathroom. Estes Carter Thompson III, 36, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was charged last month in connection with an incident on an American Airlines flight to Boston late last summer. Federal prosecutors said that on September 2, 2023, Thompson surreptitiously recorded or attempted to record a video of a 14-year-old. passenger with cell phone while using airplane lavatory while working as a flight attendant aboard American Airlines Flight 1441 from Charlotte Douglas International Airport to Boston International Airport Logan. Following an investigation into that incident, prosecutors said videos of four other girls using airplane bathrooms were found on Thompson’s iCloud account and recorded between January 2023 and August 2023. Authorities said that these four girls were 7, 9, 11 and 14 years old. The family of the 9-year-old girl, who was allegedly recorded on a January 2023 flight from Austin, Texas, to Los Angeles, has filed a civil suit against Thompson and American Airlines. In a Texas court filing responding to the complaint, American Airlines lawyers argued that the girl was at fault and negligent. because she was using a restroom “that she knew or should have known contained a visible and illuminated recording device.” “In what world would it be acceptable to blame a 9-year-old for being filmed using an airplane toilet?” asked Paul Llewellyn, an attorney representing the 9-year-old girl and 14-year-old girl who were allegedly recorded on the Boston-bound flight. “It’s shocking. It’s outrageous and, in my opinion as a lawyer, they’ve just reached a new low.” “It seems like they’ve saved every possible argument, not thinking about the (PR) backlash that might blow up in their face,” said legal analyst Greg Henning of Henning Strategies. “In my opinion, it just smacks of desperation,” Llewellyn said. “Really, are they going to stand up in front of a Texas jury, point the finger at a 9-year-old child and say, ‘Don’t blame us, it’s her fault.'” Click here to read the court filing American Airlines. In her statement, the 9-year-old’s mother said, “Instead of taking responsibility for this horrific event, American Airlines is blaming our daughter for being filmed. How, in good conscience, could they make such a suggestion? This shocks and angers. American Airlines has no shame. » The parents of the 14-year-old girl on that Boston-bound flight also reacted to American’s legal response, saying: “We are shocked by this insensitive legal position. Our thoughts are with the Texas family. “In a statement shared with NewsCenter 5 on September 2, 2023, American Airlines said it takes the incident on Flight 1441 from Charlotte to Boston very seriously. But so far, the families of the girls who were allegedly Recorded by Thompson said the airline has not apologized for the incidents or contacted them. NewsCenter 5 requested comment from American Airlines in response to this story, but has not yet received a response from. Tuesday evening Thompson pleaded not guilty to one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possessing child sexual abuse images depicting a prepubescent minor when he was in custody. was arraigned Monday at the Moakley U.S. Courthouse in Boston and returned to court on July 1. After Thompson’s arrest, American Airlines said he was “immediately suspended from service” and would not. had not worked for the airline since the September 2, 2023 flight from Charlotte to Boston. used in this report.
American Airlines is under fire for its legal team’s response to a civil lawsuit against the company and one of its flight attendants, accused of secretly recording five girls in the plane’s bathroom.
Estes Carter Thompson III, 36, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was charged last month in connection with an incident on an American Airlines flight to Boston late last summer.
Federal prosecutors said that on September 2, 2023, Thompson surreptitiously recorded or attempted to record a 14-year-old female passenger with a cellphone while she used the plane’s restroom while he worked as a flight attendant at on board American Airlines. Flight 1441 from Charlotte Douglas International Airport to Boston Logan International Airport.
Following an investigation into that incident, prosecutors said videos of four other girls using the plane’s bathroom were found on Thompson’s iCloud account and recorded between January 2023 and August 2023. Authorities have stated that these four girls were 7, 9, 11 and 14 years old. old.
The family of the 9-year-old girl, who was allegedly recorded on a January 2023 flight from Austin, Texas, to Los Angeles, has filed a civil suit against Thompson and American Airlines.
In a Texas court filing responding to the complaint, American Airlines lawyers argued that the girl was at fault and negligent because she used a restroom “that she knew or should have known that ‘they contained a visible and illuminated recording device.’
“In what world would it be acceptable to blame a 9-year-old for being filmed using an airplane bathroom?” asked Paul Llewellyn, an attorney representing the 9-year-old girl and 14-year-old girl who were allegedly recorded on the Boston-bound flight. “It’s shocking. It’s outrageous and, in my opinion as a lawyer, they’ve just reached a new low.”
“It seems like they saved every possible argument, not thinking about the (PR) backlash that would blow up in their face,” said legal analyst Greg Henning of Henning Strategies.
“In my opinion, it just smacks of desperation,” Llewellyn said. “Really, are they going to stand up in front of a Texas jury and point the finger at a 9-year-old and say, ‘Don’t blame us, it’s her fault.'”
In a statement, the 9-year-old’s mother said: “Instead of taking responsibility for this horrible event, American Airlines is blaming our daughter for being filmed. How could they, in good conscience, make such a suggestion? It’s both shocking. and makes us angry. American Airlines has no shame.
The parents of the 14-year-old girl aboard that Boston-bound flight also reacted to American’s legal response, saying, “We are shocked by this insensitive legal position. Our thoughts are with the Texas family. »
In a statement shared with NewsCenter 5 on September 2, 2023, American Airlines said it takes the incident on Flight 1441 from Charlotte to Boston very seriously. But so far, the families of the girls allegedly checked in by Thompson said the airline has not apologized for the incidents or contacted them.
NewsCenter 5 requested comment from American Airlines in response to this story, but had not yet received a response as of Tuesday evening.
Thompson pleaded not guilty to one count of attempted sexual exploitation of children and one count of possessing child sexual abuse images depicting a prepubescent minor when he was arraigned Monday at the Moakley U.S. Courthouse in Boston.
He is due back in court on July 1.
After Thompson’s arrest, American Airlines said he was “immediately suspended from service” and had not worked for the airline since the September 2, 2023 flight from Charlotte to Boston.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.