South Florida Injury Lawyer Blog
A number of alarming in-flight sexual assaults have been reported over the last several months. Here in Palm Beach County, there are hundreds of thousands of airline passengers in and out of Palm Beach International Airport every single month. As West Palm Beach sexual abuse lawyers want to outline passenger rights and some avenues of recourse you are sexually assaulted on a plane.
According to FBI data, there were nearly 100 cases of in-flight sexual assaults in the U.S. reported last year. Given that sexual assault is a greatly underreported crime, it’s likely the actual number of incidents is much higher.
Airlines have legal, ethical and industry standard obligations to prioritize the safety of their passengers. U.S. law imposes a heightened duty of care for airlines on domestic flights that can make them liable for foreseeable criminal acts, including sexual misconduct or sexual assault.
Sexual assault can be a reasonably foreseeable threat in situations involving tight quarters, alcohol service and especially when there are unaccompanied minors and/or minors seated away from family members with whom they’re traveling (an all-too-common issue that the U.S. Department of Transportation is attempting to address with a proposed regulation to require fee-free family seating for kids 13 and under).
We’ll be the first to concede that flight crews don’t always have it easy. But doesn’t mean they get a free pass if they fail to exercise reasonable care and a passenger is sexually assaulted as a result.
Some reported cases of in-flight sexual assault on airplane in recent years: Continue reading