Terrell Davis' lawyer releases video of United plane handcuffing incident, announces plans to sue airline
The lawyer representing Denver Broncos Hall of Famer Terrell Davis says his office is filing a lawsuit against United Airlines after the former Broncos star was handcuffed by law enforcement agents aboard a plane. He also released new video showing the incident.
The former star NFL running back was on a United commercial flight from Denver to California earlier this month when a flight attendant came by the area his family was sitting in and Davis says the attendant didn't respond when his son asked for a cup of ice. Davis then tapped the flight attendant on the shoulder and the attendant suddenly shouted out "Don't hit me" and went off to another part of the plane. When the flight landed the captain made an announcement that everyone should remain seated. FBI agents then came onto the plane and handcuffed Davis and took him off the plane for questioning.
"The agent walks up to me, and he leans over and whispers, 'Don't fight it,' and he put the cuffs on me," Davis told CBS Mornings in an interview a few days after what he says was an embarrassing and shocking incident. He says he was in disbelief that the shoulder-tapping could have led to him being detained by federal officers.
The FBI told CBS Colorado that after they took him off the plane they released Davis when they had determined he didn't do anything wrong.
Lawyer Parker Stinar's team on Tuesday shared new video showing Davis getting handcuffed and taken off the plane. In the video the person who approaches Davis is wearing an FBI jacket and flight crew members are watching silently from near the cockpit.
Tamiko Davis, Davis' wife, can be seen on the video standing up and exchanging a few words with the agent and with Davis. Tamiko, who appeared on CBS Mornings with her husband, said she thought the situation might be a practical joke at first. She says she and her husband try hard to shield their children from such situations, and both parents say having it happen in front of their children was traumatizing.
"As a mom, as a Black mom raising two Black sons, you work really hard to not have your children have those types of experiences," Tamiko said.
Stinar, who also appeared with Davis in his CBS interview, said in a statement on Tuesday the lawsuit is being filed with the intention of making United Airlines answer for the "systematic shortcomings that culminated in this traumatic incident." His complete statement is as follows:
This video confirms the harrowing tale of multiple law enforcement agents, including the FBI, boarding the plane and apprehending a shocked, terrified, humiliated, and compliant Mr. Davis in front of his wife, Tamiko, minor children, and more than one hundred passengers. The rationale behind the United Airlines employee's deceitful or inaccurate report extends far beyond a mere ice request or innocent tap on the shoulder. This is why we will be filing a lawsuit because only through legal proceedings can we uncover the truth and make United Airlines answer for the systemic shortcomings that culminated in this traumatic incident, causing irreparable harm and enduring suffering for the Davis family.
United has apologized for what happened and they have said that they took the flight attendant out of rotation while the matter is investigated.
Jesse Sarles manages the web content and publishing operations for CBS Colorado. He writes articles about Colorado news and sports in and around the Denver area.