An explosive lawsuit alleges negligence by Delta Air Lines and collusion between an intoxicated Delta off-duty flight attendant and the flight attendants who continued to serve her alcohol. The allegations here are wild including sexual assault and vaping.
Lawsuit Alleges Passenger Was Unwillingly Kissed and Groped By A “Bombed” Delta Flight Attendant After Her On-Duty Colleagues Served Her Five Cans Of Beer
Abigail Louise Trebnick-Emerson is a Delta flight attendant who was flying “non-rev” (meaning at a greatly reduced price on a space-available basis) from Las Vegas (LAS) to Minneapolis (MSP). She was placed in a middle seat next to Alison Petri, who was seated on the aisle.
Trebnick-Emerson was served wine onboard, two cans at a time. After consuming the first two cans, she ordered two more. After finishing the third, she leaned over and kissed her female seatmate on the mouth.
Petri retreated to the rear lavatory and reported the incident. One of the on-duty flight attendants, John Riss, purportedly brought Trebnick-Emerson a glass of water…and a fifth can of wine.
That may have been the end of it, but after the flight landed when Petri stood up to gather her luggage, Trebnick-Emerson reportedly groped her in the butt. She also began vaping as the plane descended, blowing “‘plumes of smoke” toward Petri.
The incident occurred on November 17, 2022, with the lawsuit (against Delta Air Lines for negligence) filed hours before the one-year statute of limitation expired. Petri immediately found Delta ground staff in Minneapolis and made her complaint. Flight attendants were interviewed, but denied seeing anything onboard (more on that in a moment).
Meanwhile, Trebnick-Emerson was so intoxicated she stumbled down an escalator and was later held by local police and charged with disorderly conduct until she could sober up. As part of her plea deal in the criminal matter, she admitted to physically touching Petri against her will.
There’s more to this story which I will analyze tomorrow. I have the Facebook Messenger records between Riss and Trebnick-Emerson. The cover-up over this was so clear that Petri’s case is very strong and it is not only Trebnick-Emerson who should fear losing a job.
CONCLUSION
A woman is suing Delta and an off-duty Delta flight attendant for unwanted physical contact including kissing on the mouth and groping the buttocks on a Delta flight departing Las Vegas. Her case is strong and even includes photographic evidence of the off-duty attendant’s intoxication.
This is really a case about non-revs acting up onboard and how they are often enabled and protected by their colleagues. We’ll go into that more tomorrow.
What are your thoughts on this lawsuit?
Who’s the Riss person in the Facebook messages?
It says above, the FA working the flight who the woman complained to.
Missed that – thanks – As a non-rev, this is beyond the pale.
What happens in Vegas apparently extends to flights home.
So the non-rev is still working for Delta? After being detained by airport security for being so intoxicated? (Let alone the passenger allegations? Is this correct?
I find this VERY hard to believe she’s still working. I have been a DL non rev my entire 53 years. I was once denied boarding in BHM because my shirt was denim under my coat and tie. If I rang a call button I would spontaneously combust.
I believe the non-rev decorum and dress code pendulum has sung too far right from those days but for SURE she had her pass privileges revoked at minimum and she has no union to protect her so I can’t imagine she’s still employed.
I would agree – seems highly unlikely that she would still be employed at this point. I called her a Delta FA because she was one at the time and Delta has not commented on this matter or confirmed whether she is still employed.
She’s a woman, of course she gets a slap on the wrist.
Women live life on easy mode.
As a woman I can assure you that your perception is invalid.
“The incident occurred on November 17, 2022” Why we are hearing about it 1 year later? This is the type of stuff that you sue immediately and not wait a year to act on it.
Maybe not. They may have been trying to settle it out of court, thinking they could get a bigger settlement if doing so kept it out of the news.
That may well be, but it was certainly filed not a day later to avoid SOL concerns.
Everybody knows that Delta is head and shoulders above everyone else. They outperform ALL competitors. They are building on a long list of successes to further distinguish itself from the industry. They hire and retain the best in the industry.
Seems as if you drank the Koolaid-LOL. Not really what this story is about Tim.
Sarcasm or just bot doing damage control?
A user with the handle “Tim Dunn” is a horrific Delta apologist on many travel blogs. For frequent/longtime readers, it’s kind of an inside joke as any time there’s a post about DL, good or bad, Tim Dunn absolutely MUST chime in with some nonsensical “facts” about how great Delta is and how anyone criticizing Delta is incorrect. (S)He takes himself VERY seriously with his bullshit and “facts” and “statistics”, but pretty much every other reader who’s been around long enough to know (of) him is laughing *at* him.
By the graciousness of my dearest friend, I am able to fly non-rev on United. I take advantage of it as much as possible – 20 – 30 trips a year. While I joke around with my FA retiree friend, on board, non-revs should fade into the background as much as humanly possible.
(I make it habit to bring 3-4 bags of share candy on board for the FAs and I say “Thank you for the ride, I’m non rev and please feel free to call on me for anything. Whether it’s lifting a carry-on bag into an overhead or a serious need, I’m here to help.”)
That’s it. No shitface drunk episodes, no demands relating to food, and no drama… THAT is how non-revs should travel. Full Stop.
You are a guest of the airline. Act appropriately.
What is most surprising to me is that MOST non-rev issues I’ve seen are about buddy/companion use and not the employee or the retiree.
You lost me at ” cans of wine.”
Rev/Con is irrelevant, just a trashy passenger. I can’t imagine how Delta is liable for this
The woman who did the groping was a Delta employee, acting is their agent even if off duty. She continued to be over served by Delta Delta had the means to control her behavior, or at least limit the recurrence after the initial kiss and before the Parting butt squeeze. As usual, it’s the cover up not the offense
Is the picture of the person falling down supposedly the same one that is on the plane? Completely different hacket and bag.
It is the same person. Picture is from court documents (surveillance footage still).