United Passenger Forcibly Removed from Overbooked Flight

A man on an overbooked United Airlines flight that was scheduled to depart Chicago O’Hare for Louisville was forcibly removed from his seat and dragged through the aisle, a horrific event caught live on video. According to a report in The New York Times, the video shows a security person in plain clothes wrestling the man from his seat and dragging him by his arms as his glasses slid down his face and blood came out of his mouth.

Man Injured in Scuffle

A United spokesman told the Times that employees had asked the man several times to relinquish his seat before force was used. When the customer refused to leave, airline staff called the Aviation Department’s security personnel. United first sought volunteers to give up their seats without compensation since the flight was overbooked. Since no one stepped forward, four passengers were randomly selected to be bumped and three left without incident.

Passengers told the media that the man was a doctor who had appointments to see patients Monday and didn’t want to miss his flight. The man reportedly came back to his seat after he was removed. He was taken to a local hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries.

However, other passengers said it seemed as if his head struck the seat and he went limp as he was dragged off the plane. This episode was the second social media stir for United in two weeks. In March two girls were told to get off a flight because they were wearing leggings, which the company said violated its dress code. Critics called the policy “sexist” and “overbearing.” The Chicago Police Department is investigating this incident.

Incident Sparks Outrage

The video of the man getting dragged off the plane has been shared incessantly on social media. It has sparked outrage, and justifiably so. The incident began with the airline overbooking the flight, their mistake. They then asked for volunteers and when they didn’t get any picked four people randomly and told them to get off the plane. They did not hear the passenger out when he said he had to be in Louisville the next day to see patients.

The steps that the aviation security personnel took clearly seem outrageous and excessive. The dragged the man off the plane, bleeding and limp. Our personal injury lawyers hope the passenger gets justice and fair compensation for the injuries, losses, humiliation and emotional distress he suffered as a result of this incident.