Family Claims American Airlines Intentionally Bumped 4-Year-Old from Flight Ahead of Disney Trip: Lawsuit

A Louisiana household is suing American Airlines after they are saying they had been allegedly “targeted” over a member of the family’s incapacity.

Coby and Emily Stewart declare they paid $5,187.58 for airline tickets from Lake Charles, La., to Orlando, Fla. They arrived at Lake Charles Regional Airport with their 4 youngsters nearly two hours early on March 1, 2025, and went straight to the American Airlines ticket counter for early check-in, in accordance with a grievance obtained by PEOPLE.

At the counter, the ticketing agent was made conscious that Coby was a former member of the U.S. army, whereas Emily was deaf and makes use of American Sign Language (ASL) to speak, in accordance with the submitting. 

The grievance claims that the agent then knowledgeable the mother and father that the flight was “oversold” nearly “immediately” after listening to of Coby’s army standing and Emily’s incapacity, regardless of different passengers allegedly nonetheless not having checked in.

The grievance alleges the agent first knowledgeable the household that one individual of their occasion can be “ejected” from the flight, then advised them their 4-year-old son Archer was going to be eliminated. 

The mother and father defined they may not be separated on account of Emily’s incapacity and her want for Coby’s help in caring for his or her 4 youngsters in the course of the flight, per the grievance. Despite this, the ticketing agent allegedly “refused to accommodate” the household and Emily’s “special assistance needs.”

As a outcome, Coby voluntarily eliminated himself from the flight, and tried to make a distinct flight at Jack Brooks Regional Airport in Texas, per the grievance. He was given a $1,200 voucher to make use of for the flight by the ticketing agent, who allegedly “assured” him that he would be capable to reunite along with his household throughout their connection at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. 

Coby raced to the opposite airport in one other state to catch his new flight, per the grievance. However, whereas he was in transit, he allegedly “received a telephone call from the same American Airlines ticketing agent, advising that the Lake Charles flight was not ‘oversold’ after all, and that she was rescinding his $1,200 voucher.”

The submitting alleges that the collection of occasions brought about the household in “travel expenses, loss of a compensation voucher, loss of value of preferred seating, loss in value of a lesser desirable ticket.” They are additionally asking for damages for the “intentional infliction of emotional distress, fear, anxiety, and stress,” per the grievance. 

Never miss a narrative — join PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to remain up-to-date on the most effective of what PEOPLE has to supply, from superstar information to driving human curiosity tales.

The household additionally claims that American Airlines breached the Americans with Disabilities Act because the ticketing agent “clearly targeted the Stewart family” because of Emily’s “special assistance needs and disability and because she was traveling with four minor children.”

They declare the ticketing agent knowledgeable them that they had been the one passengers to be eliminated from the “full flight” solely after studying about Emily’s incapacity. 

PEOPLE reached out to American Airlines, Skywest Airlines and the Stewarts’ lawyer, Christopher Ieyoub, for remark, however didn’t obtain an instantaneous response.

The household was ultimately reunited after the ordeal, Ieyoub advised The Independent. Coby was not in a position to meet up along with his household for his or her flight in Dallas, however that he lastly arrived “frazzled” at Disney World later that night time after the others, the lawyer claimed.