Pilot had passenger detained for not flushing toilet

[green73]

A passenger who flew from Philadelphia to San Francisco was detained on arrival by federal agents after a vindictive flight attendant claimed he had not flushed a lavatory toilet, according to a federal suit.

The suit, which seeks $500,000 in damages, was filed last week in the Northern District of California.

Salvatore Bevivino, 52, a business manager for Genentech, boarded a Virgin America flight on April 28, 2012. After the plane reached cruising altitude over Indiana, the former Amblerite pushed the call button and asked for a soda.

According to the suit, a male attendant told Bevivino that if he wanted a drink he would have to use a computer touch screen installed on the back of the facing seat.

When another attendant passed a minute later, Bevivino made the request for a second time and asked why they couldn't deliver a drink like other airlines. After Bevivino said he would contact Virgin America a third attendant brought him the soda.

The aircraft landed at San Francisco International. But as Bevivino began to disembark he was pulled aside by the plane's captain "as a person of suspicion."

Bevivino said he had no idea why he was detained. Initially he believed that his swarthy Italian complexion may have caused him to be mistaken for someone from the Middle East.

Then the pilot asked him why'd he'd been yelling obscenities at his crew.

And added that he'd left the toilet unflushed.

The pilot then asked a half-dozen uniformed police, FBI and TSA agents to remove Bevivino.

According to a police incident report, a flight attendant told an investigator that Bevivino had gone to the restroom after asking for the drink:

"[He] came back out with a smile on his face and began using profanities. [Name redacted] passed by the restroom and saw that Bevivino left the door open and did not flush the toilet."

The police report notes the captain didn't believe he or his flight crew ever felt threatened by Bevivino.

Bevivino, who now lives in the Bay Area, told police he had not yelled obscenities at anyone or left any toilet unflushed. He only had been trying to order a drink, was flustered with problems with the onboard computer, and had become frustrated when the flight attendant ignored him, according to the police report.

Bevivino was eventually released. But only the incident had caused him embarrassment, humiliation, mortification, mental anguish and emotional distress, and damage to his professional reputation, according to the suit.

The complaint states that Virgin America violated Bevivino's civil rights through false imprisonment, discrimination, and denial of equal rights.

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20130429_Pilot_had_passenger_detained_for_not_flus hing_toilet.html

[jbauer]

Dropping a duce while joining the mile high club!! Or since he didn't get screwed till they landed does it not count?

[sailingaway]

Damages way too high, will probably cite the disruption and refusal to follow direction with the swearing, but I think he should win. Just, that he should get about $1.

[WM_in_MO]

The brown bomber strikes again!

[Acala]

My guess: the guy is a MAJOR asshole and pissed everyone off so much they dropped a dime on him. Not saying it is right, but I AM saying don't be an asshole. There is rarely a reason for it.

[PaulConventionWV]

I agree that damages are way too high. Probably more than a dollar, but still way too high. Perhaps he's planning to settle for a lower amount?

[green73]

My guess: the guy is a MAJOR asshole and pissed everyone off so much they dropped a dime on him. Not saying it is right, but I AM saying don't be an asshole. There is rarely a reason for it.

What a great country this would be if every business could sic the cops on customers they didn't like.

[Acala]

What a great country this would be if every business could sic the cops on customers they didn't like.

Every business CAN toss a customer out if they don't like them. They can also call the cops if they don't go peacefully. And that is just as it should be. But it is kinda hard to toss a guy out of an airplane. Not approving calling the Federal thugs on the guy. Just saying that if you had both sides of the story, you would agree the guy needed a slap down.

[green73]

Every business CAN toss a customer out if they don't like them. They can also call the cops if they don't go peacefully. And that is just as it should be. But it is kinda hard to toss a guy out of an airplane. Not approving calling the Federal thugs on the guy. Just saying that if you had both sides of the story, you would agree the guy needed a slap down.

We haven't heard both sides, so how can I agree to that? Frankly, I'd be surprised that the plane wasn't diverted and fighter jets scrambled if what you think is true. Seems to be how it works these days.

[Acala]

We haven't heard both sides, so how can I agree to that? Frankly, I'd be surprised that the plane wasn't diverted and fighter jets scrambled if what you think is true. Seems to be how it works these days.

Neither of us know what happened. All we know is what the passenger alleges happened in his plea for a bunch of money. But I can absolutely ASSURE you that there is another side to the story.

[Anti Federalist]

Every business CAN toss a customer out if they don't like them. They can also call the cops if they don't go peacefully. And that is just as it should be. But it is kinda hard to toss a guy out of an airplane. Not approving calling the Federal thugs on the guy. Just saying that if you had both sides of the story, you would agree the guy needed a slap down.

Complaining about bad service, and being a dick about it, can land you in jail and ruin your life forever with an "air terrorism" charge.

Tough shit on the bailed out airlines.

This isn't like being thrown out of a bar for being drunk and rowdy.

Fuck them, I hope this guy sues them blind.

[Tod]

I was once falsely accused by a stewardess of smoking in a restroom during a transatlantic flight. I don't even smoke. Fortunately she let it drop.

[green73]

I was once falsely accused by a stewardess of smoking in a restroom during a transatlantic flight. I don't even smoke. Fortunately she let it drop.

Your lucky you're not in Gitmo.

[Henry Rogue]

Complaining about bad service, and being a dick about it, can land you in jail and ruin your life forever with an "air terrorism" charge.

Tough shit on the bailed out airlines.

This isn't like being thrown out of a bar for being drunk and rowdy.

Fuck them, I hope this guy sues them blind. Me too.

[Brian4Liberty]

Now we know what Danke has been up to...

[LibertyEagle]

My guess: the guy is a MAJOR asshole and pissed everyone off so much they dropped a dime on him. Not saying it is right, but I AM saying don't be an asshole. There is rarely a reason for it.

If they lied, he should sue them to Hell and back. Forget that, he should sue them anyway. The idea that he would be accused of terrorism for not flushing the toilet or even being a jerk, is beyond ridiculous. If this is what they did, they deserve to be sued into bankruptcy and I sincerely hope they get what is coming to them.

[sailingaway]

What a great country this would be if every business could sic the cops on customers they didn't like.

Boats planes and trains can, to a certain extent, but there has to be some justification. "Common carriers", their captains have certain rights other businesses don't because in transit they are responsible for the other travelers.

[LibertyEagle]

Boats planes and trains can, to a certain extent, but there has to be some justification. "Common carriers", their captains have certain rights other businesses don't because in transit they are responsible for the other travelers.

They have the right to potentially lie about a customer and get him charged with terrorism?

I think NOT!

[Anti Federalist]

Boats planes and trains can, to a certain extent, but there has to be some justification. "Common carriers", their captains have certain rights other businesses don't because in transit they are responsible for the other travelers.

Everybody knows what I do for a living...if I unjustly had somebody pulled off the vessel and arrested, not only could the company be liable, but I, personally, could be as well.

The modern day precedent was set back in the 80's, when the master of a riverboat had somebody thrown off and arrested, unjustly, and both he and the company were found liable.

I'll have to see if I can dig up that case.

In order to board you have to waive that right to sue if you get thrown off.

http://www.seakeywestexpress.com/contaract.html

http://www.princess.com/legal/passage_contract/index.jsp

http://www.pirateshipadventures.com/policies

[The Free Hornet]

Flew from Philly to San Francisco:


What Are Some Statutes of Limitations for California?

To give you a good example of how much variation there is depending on what the claim is, here are the statutes of limitations for some actions within California:

Personal injury: Two years.
Libel or slander: One year.
Domestic violence: Three years.
Medical malpractice: Three years.
Breach of written contract: Four years.
Breach of oral contract: Two years.
Childhood sexual abuse: Eight years from the child's 18th birthday or three years after discovering that some injury resulted from childhood sexual abuse regardless of the victim's age.

litigation.findlaw.com/filing-a-lawsuit/is-there-a-time-limit-to-file-a-lawsuit-what-are-statutes-of.html (http://litigation.findlaw.com/filing-a-lawsuit/is-there-a-time-limit-to-file-a-lawsuit-what-are-statutes-of.html)

Filing the suit a year later - incident date April 28 2012 - means he minimizes the likelihood any behavior will be remembered.

[bolil]

Don't those plains drop their... errrr... fecal cargo willy nilly? Is this not a form of Biodefecal terror?

[Carson]

I wonder that now that we know they are checking, will everyone be leaving them a big corny one. :D


Maybe the pilot had a target acquired for his blue water and was counting on it.

[Anti Federalist]

I wonder that now that we know they are checking, will everyone be leaving them a big corny one. :D


Maybe the pilot had a target acquired for his blue water and was counting on it.

Ewwwww....LOL

You know, off topic, but this is one of my pet peeves...people who needs must, especially on an hour or less flight, take a shit on a confined plane and stink the place up.

What, you couldn't have shit an hour ago at the airport???

FFS

[Slutter McGee]

Complaining about bad service, and being a dick about it, can land you in jail and ruin your life forever with an "air terrorism" charge.

Tough shit on the bailed out airlines.

This isn't like being thrown out of a bar for being drunk and rowdy.

Fuck them, I hope this guy sues them blind.

I hope we all can agree that the airline had every right to kick the asshole off the flight. The problem was what happened afterwards. No way police should have been involved.

Slutter McGee

[The Free Hornet]

I hope we all can agree that the airline had every right to kick the asshole off the flight.

The airlines are complicit in regulatory capture* (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_capture) and the taxpayer-funded airline bailout (https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2001/10/air-o18.html).

As such, I cannot agree that the CORPORATE airline has "every right". Some rights, not all.


* For the record, they suck at it (http://townhall.com/columnists/donaldlambro/2013/04/25/air-traffic-slowdown-is-manufactured-crisis-n1579128), and are letting the TSA and FAA screw up their industry.

[affa]

I agree that damages are way too high. Probably more than a dollar, but still way too high. Perhaps he's planning to settle for a lower amount?

i'm sure he's hoping to settle, and part of that, in my limited legal understanding, is starting the bar high.

lots of oddities in suing... sort of like how it's best to wait as long as possible before suing for certain things like copyright infringement (like when you hear about someone claiming a movie stole it's plot from their book, for example) because otherwise they'd get jack for damages.



Ewwwww....LOL

You know, off topic, but this is one of my pet peeves...people who needs must, especially on an hour or less flight, take a shit on a confined plane and stink the place up.

What, you couldn't have shit an hour ago at the airport???

FFS

air travel, and preparing for it, messes up a lot of peoples internals. i'd never go 2 on a plane, but i can understand it setting some people off.