Huntington Woman Suing Airline After Arrest Over Seat Change

A Huntington woman who says she was arrested after trying to change her seat on a flight is now suing the airline.

Jean Mamakos, 68, is suing United Airlines to the tune of $5 million, USA Today reports.

Mamakos was traveling to Alaska with her ski group back in March 2013, according to CTwatchdog.com. It was on the last leg of the trip from Seattle, when Mamakos decided once the doors were closed for take-off to move to an empty row of seats to stretch out.

But the journey started to go south for Mamakos when flight attendants said she’d have to pay for a seat upgrade.

“At that point I decided no, I’m not paying $109 and I’ll go back to my seat,” Mamakos told CBS New York.

Yet the ordeal was from over. Mamakos heard an announcement from the captain saying a woman on the plane wanted to exit the plane. Next thing she knew, the flight attendants surrounded her and told her to get off the plane, according to CBS.

But Mamakos, who had spent thousands for the trip and didn’t want to part from her group, said she was staying put. Ultimately, she was led away in handcuffs and spent three days in a county jail as the courts were closed over the weekend, CBS reports.

A spokesman for United Airlines told CTwatchdog.com that Mamakos’ refusal to return to her seat “prevented the crew from doing their job of making sure all the passengers were safe.”

She was charged with trespassing and with resisting arrest, CTwatchdog.com reported.

“They enjoyed their ski trip and I had an experience in jail,” Mamakos said.

The lawsuit may be may be tried in Brooklyn federal court, according to CBS.

Credit: Flickr/Creative Commons/Christian Junker

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