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Katsiaryna Shasholka (left) and Anthony Williams (right), aboard American Airlines flight AA2408 (via court filing).
A retired Black police officer has sued American Airlines, several crew members, and a fellow passenger for racially profiling him and falsely accusing him of human trafficking a woman who was actually his new wife.
Anthony Williams is an Arizona resident and retired police officer. His wife, Katsiaryna Shasholka, is a white woman and Russian national. On Sept. 13, 2022, the two boarded an American Airlines flight from Phoenix to Miami, bound for their honeymoon. The couple says that while on the flight, another passenger, Peter Salles, falsely accused Williams of trafficking Shasholka and reported his concerns to the cabin crew.
Crew members Angel Rodriguez and Michael Wilfong did not question the couple or conduct any kind of investigation, but rather reported him for human trafficking to law enforcement, said the complaint.
The couple further said that when the plane landed, they were, “falsely imprisoned by American Airlines employees whom escorted them off the plane, they were made to wait confused and embarrassed as the other passengers deplaned and walked by them, and then they were questioned by police officers who worked for the Miami-Dade Police Department, and were detained, falsely imprisoned, questioned, and humiliated.”
Williams and Shasholka seek unspecified damages from American Airlines, Salles, Rodriguez, and Wilfong in excess of $75,000 to compensate them for what they say was racial discrimination under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and negligence.
The plaintiffs are represented by notable civil rights lawyer Jasmine Rand, who also represented the families of Trayvon Martin, George Floyd, and Michael Brown.
Rand provided Law&Crime with the following statement by Williams via email Wednesday:
I am a former law enforcement officer. I worked hard to fight crime, and to be accused of committing a heinous crime is unfathomable. I was accused of human trafficking my wife because of my race. I fought hard to uphold the law in this country and I will fight hard now to uphold the laws that prohibit racial discrimination.
A spokesperson from American Airlines said in an email to Law&Crime Wednesday, “American strives to provide a positive experience to everyone who travels with us. We are reviewing the allegations of the complaint.”
You can read the full complaint here.
