SAN ANTONIO — An incident, partly captured in a viral video from 2021, is now the center of a federal civil lawsuit involving a San Antonio woman.
It was taken by a TikTok user, @lol.ariee as she was getting off an American Airlines flight from Dallas to Charlotte on July 7, 2021.
The now-deleted video shows the women, identified in the lawsuit as Heather Wells, duct taped to a chair. Wells was served the lawsuit Thursday.
The Federal Aviation Administration is suing to collect more than $80,000 in fines for the incident.
Wells told KENS 5 she was having a mental health episode that day on the flight and is apologetic for her actions.
"I know that it was not rational, and I was not actually in any external danger but at the time I was genuinely afraid for my life," Wells said. "Words can't express how sorry I am for the fear I caused and the people I hurt."
The lawsuit was filed last week. It states Wells was riding first class. After more than an hour into the flight and after ordering a Jack Daniels (neat), it alleges Wells started to become agitated and “wanted out of the plane”.
It alleges she began running and crawling around the plane while talking incoherently to passengers. It then stated, “When a flight attendant responded, Defendant became verbally aggressive and told the flight attendant that she would “hurt him” if he didn’t get out of her way. She then pushed the flight attendant aside and moved to the front of the aircraft.”
It then goes on to describe Wells allegedly grabbing the handle to the front cabin door. Two flight attendants and a passenger started to restrain her.
It alleges she struck a flight attendant in the head multiple times before she was duct taped to the seat.
It stated, “after she was seated, Defendant continued to kick and spit and attempted to bite and head butt a flight attendant and passengers.”
Once the plane landed in Charlotte, the lawsuit said Wells had to be sedated in order to be taken off the plane. Wells said she was then taken to a hospital and kept under observation.
She was never criminally charged but fined by the FAA $81,950. Her fine came when the FAA was cracking down on unruly passengers and at the time was the largest fine handed out.
"The last thing I would ever want to do is to hurt anyone," Wells said. "I was not in control of my actions at the time, but that doesn't undo the harm I caused, and I am truly sorry."
Wells added she does not have an attorney right now and is worried she may not be able to afford one.