Former NFL star Terrell Davis will sue United Airlines and one of its employees after a recent incident that led to Davis being handcuffed by the FBI and removed from a plane at John Wayne Airport, his attorney said.
Davis’ lawyer also released new video that shows Davis being handcuffed by a man in an FBI jacket and led away, while his wife, Tamiko, stands nearby. The Davises’ three children, ages 9 to 13, were also said to be present but cannot be seen in the video.
Davis has said that during a July 13 flight from Denver to Santa Ana he lightly tapped a flight attendant and asked for some ice. The flight attendant yelled, “Don’t hit me!” Davis said.
The FBI said it responded that day to a report of “a violent assault.” A person was detained for questioning, was cooperative and then was released, with no charges pursued, the FBI said.
Davis told CNN last week: “I certainly felt like that wouldn’t have happened if I … was a white person. That wouldn’t have happened. That’s what I felt. Whether that’s true or not, that’s a different conversation.”
“This clearly is not the kind of travel experience we strive to provide,” United said in a statement last week. “We have reached out to Mr. Davis’s team to apologize and continue to discuss the issue with them. We have removed the flight attendant from duty while we closely look into this matter and we are reviewing our policies around incidents like this.”