Chicago Aviation Officer Who Was Fired for Dragging a Passenger Off United Airlines Jet Flight Is Suing the City

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Remember the aviation officer who was recorded dragging a passenger off a United Airlines flight? He’s now suing the city of Chicago because he claims he was wrongfully terminated.
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James Long is a former officer of the Chicago Department of Aviation who was seen in a viral video pulling passenger David Dao, 69, from his seat and dragging him off a United Airlines jet back on April 9, 2017.
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Now, he has filed a lawsuit in Cook County with charges of negligence and defamation. In his lawsuit, Long claims he wasn’t trained to deal with misbehaving passengers which resulted in his unfair termination. He also states he was slandered by city aviation commissioner Ginger Evans on social media when Evans said the officers behaved inappropriately and were not armed “for good reasons.”
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On April 9, 2017, Dao was returning to Kentucky from Chicago when he and three other passengers were asked to give up their seats for United Airlines employees. When Dao refused the airline called in aviation police. Long claims he “gently tried to remove Dr. Dao from his seat by putting a hand on his arm” using “minimal but necessary” force. Long says his lack of training resulted in the incident getting out of control; Dao ended up with a broken nose and two missing teeth.
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Last year, Dao reached a settlement with United for an undisclosed amount of money. Long was fired Aug. 8, 2017. Long is seeking a reimbursement of damages which include back pay and payments to his 401(k) retirement plan. Dao’s legal team has yet to reap.