KING COUNTY, Wash. — This story was originally published on MyNorthwest.com.
A woman is suing Alaska Airlines after a man allegedly sexually assaulted her during a flight.
Aviation attorney Mark Lindquist is filing the lawsuit on behalf of the woman and claims the airline was negligent in the sexual assault.
According to a news release from Lindquist Law Thursday, the incident happened on May 14, 2023, when the woman was flying from Seattle to Honolulu on a trip with her book club.
Details of alleged sexual assault on Alaska Airlines
The woman said the man was sitting across the aisle from her and initially seemed sober. However, the woman claims the flight attendants continually refilled his glass of wine and at one point, the man grabbed her hand for an unwanted kiss.
She said the man eventually passed out but that when he regained consciousness, flight attendants continued to serve him more wine and he became more intoxicated. Then, the situation turned violent.
“Attempting to ignore him, and suffering a headache, the victim covered her eyes with a bag of ice and tried to rest,” the news release stated. “She reported she was shocked when he forcibly grabbed her right breast and groped her.”
According to Lindquist Law, the man was met by officers when he got off the plane. A deputy sheriff described him in a report as “very unsteady on his feet and I could smell the strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from his breath as he spoke,” the firm added.
The lawsuit accuses the man of negligence, assault and battery and also claims negligence against Alaska Airlines for “grossly overserving alcohol and failing to protect the victim.”
According to KIRO 7, the woman has been in contact with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Hawaii but is unclear how potential criminal charges were handled. KIRO 7 reported that, according to her attorney, the woman was told the man paid a fine.
“With this lawsuit, our client hopes for accountability and justice,” Lindquist said via the release. “She doesn’t want drunken sexual assaults happening to others.”
KIRO Newsradio reached out to Alaska Airlines regarding the lawsuit.
“We don’t comment on active litigation,” the airline stated via email.
FBI reports surge of sexual assaults on airplanes
In 2023, federal authorities reported sexual assaults on planes are increasing — saying in the last five years, cases of sexual assault and misconduct on planes have spiked 300%.
From 2019 to 2021, there was a 25% increase in investigations of sexual misconduct on planes, according to the FBI. In 2018, there were 27 sexual misconduct investigations. In 2022, that number rose to 90 investigations.
The majority of misconduct occurs while passengers are sleeping, according to officials, with many cases involving drugs and alcohol. Nearly a quarter of reported victims are minors.
Man from Mercer Island sentenced
Last month, a man from Mercer Island was sentenced for sexually abusing a 15-year-old on a flight in November 2021, reported the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, via a news release.
According to U.S. Attorney Tessa Gorman, 72-year-old Munir Walji was sentenced to 10 years of supervised release, including two that must be served as home incarceration, for abusive sexual contact in special aircraft jurisdiction and attempted sexual abuse of a minor in special aircraft jurisdiction.
Additional cases of sexual assault on Seattle flights
In August 2024, two men were sentenced to prison in separate cases of sexually assaulting passengers on flights to Seattle. Both sentences were imposed in U.S. District Court.
The first case where a sentence was issued involved 39-year-old Abhinav Kumar, a citizen of India, according to a news release from Gorman.
The second case sentenced involved 25-year-old Desmond D. Bostick. Gorman reported in her statement that Bostick pleaded guilty in April to admitting the sexual motivation for his assault on a 24-year-old stranger sitting next to him on a June 2023 Alaska Airlines flight from San Diego to Seattle.
Lawsuit filed against Delta Air Lines
In March 2024, a woman filed a lawsuit against Delta Air Lines after she was sexually assaulted on a flight from Phoenix to Seattle by an airline employee while she was on her way home from attending a Taylor Swift concert.
The woman was asleep when a man seated next to her took her hand and placed it on his crotch while reaching under the woman’s shirt and touching her breasts, according to the Department of Justice.
Duane Brick, 53, a Delta Air Lines mechanic, pleaded guilty to abusive sexual contact on March 5. He is no longer employed by the airline. He faces up to two years in prison with a sentencing scheduled on June 10, according to U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Contributing: Bill Kaczaraba and Frank Sumrall, MyNorthwest; Kate Stone, KIRO Newsradio; KIRO 7; The Associated Press
Julia Dallas is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read her stories here. Follow Julia on X here and email her here.
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