-PJ
Posted on 08/24/2019 11:00:06 AM PDT by simpson96
An elderly retired doctor and his wife are suing an airline, some of its employees, a sheriff and his deputies, saying he was illegally arrested and subjected to excessive force after being removed from an airplane at New Orleans International Airport.
Dr. Johannes Markus Sieber and his wife Mina Margareta Sieber Schneiter, both 74 and citizens of Switzerland, were removed from a Delta Airlines flight at the airport in November 2016 following what they say was a minor incident over the placing of luggage in an overhead compartment.
According to the suit filed in the U.S District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, as Sieber was attempting to put his wife's luggage in the compartment he accidentally dislodged a plastic bag containing about 20-30 small packets that were approximately 4 inches by 1.5 inches. Instead of helping Sieber with the packets as they fell to the floor, a flight attendant went to the back of the plane and pushed a "red button" that alerted other attendants, the suit claims.
The suit further alleges breach of contract by Delta and damages for mental suffering, and unlawful arrest and use of excessive force by two deputies called on to the plane following the baggage incident. Sheriff Joseph P. Lopinto is named in the suit, accused of failing to supervise or properly train deputies Jesse Steer and Erroll Harris.
Sieber was charged with resisting arrest and striking an attendant with his luggage, which be denied. He said he was held in handcuffs in a cage, then removed to jail, where he remained for 16 hours. The Jefferson Parish District Attorney declined to prosecute him on those charges.
(Excerpt) Read more at louisianarecord.com ...
“he accidentally dislodged a plastic bag containing about 20-30 small packets that were approximately 4 inches by 1.5 inches. “ ???
Remember when journalists would actual try to get details of a story?
What are these packets?
Who owned them?
Typically, flight attendants don’t normally press the “red” button unless something is going on.
There’s something about the romance of air travel.
Not enough info
Mid 70s Swiss doctor touring the USA with his wife were deemed a threat and forcibly removed
And he was held 16 hours in airport jail
Pretty bizarre
I’ll go ahead and say something racist
This is New Orleans ....Jefferson Parish deputies...
Could be nothing
WTF ??? !!!
Condoms?
Artificial sweeteners? Stevia?
-PJ
Hard to tell from the description what exactly happened. And where was the flight’s captain during the encounter? If the captain called for assistance, I don’t have much sympathy for the uncooperative tourist, retired doctor or not.
LOL
I am outraged by this article. Because I do not consider a person who is 74 to be “elderly”. Okay, maybe I did when I was 20. But not now.
It would have been OK, but he started yodeling.
It’s Delta - nothing unusual.
He accidentally spilled the cocaine supply of a member of the flight crew?
Airplane waitresses are on a major power trip these days.
People need to quite suing and just take responsibility for their actions... selfish and inconsiderate world today doesn’t say enough!
Looks like the chief stewardess called for help.
My guess is the doctor insisted on carrying aboard a piece of luggage that was really too big for overhead use. He repeatedly banged it around in different ways to get it into the bin, knocking other people’s stuff around and holding up the queue. He probably refused help and wouldn’t let staff store it somewhere else aboard the aircraft as, especially if the packets were he and his wife’s medication, he feared theft. The situation spirals out from there.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.