Former NBA player Eric Murdock’s July flight has yielded a $10 million lawsuit against United Airlines.
According to Sports Illustrated, Murdock was aboard a July 23 flight from Las Vegas to New Jersey when he asked a white flight attendant to switch to a seat in the emergency exit row. He was hoping to sit near his son with whom he’d been traveling. The attendant informed Murdock that the emergency row hosted premium-priced seats – without specifying the price – and would not allow him to switch. When another passenger began to take the seat, they offered to change with Murdock instead. After agreeing, the flight attendant instructed the former Heat player back to his seat and claimed the emergency row needed to remain empty altogether for an undisclosed reason.
About half an hour later, the attendant allowed a white woman to take the same seat Murdock requested. Another passenger who witnessed the ordeal, Brenda Williams, who is now a co-plaintiff on the lawsuit, openly questioned the attendant’s motives. Williams was allegedly met with screams by the attendant, who told Williams to mind her business and attempted to take her phone after she tried to film the ordeal.
Later, when the attendant approached Murdock with drinks, USA Today reports that she asked Murdock if he was “going to boycott” receiving a beverage.
Upon landing, Murdock and Williams were both escorted off the plane by airport security, questioned by TSA guards and eventually released without charges against them.
While United Airlines has told USA Today it is unable to comment on the specifics of what took place, representatives ensure that the allegations are being considered.
“At United, we proudly hold ourselves to the highest standards of professionalism and have zero tolerance for discrimination of any kind,” the airline told the publication.
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