Terrell Lamar Davis, an NFL Hall of Famer, is no longer barred from flying on United Airlines after being handcuffed and removed from a plane on July 13.
The misunderstanding occurred when the football legend lightly tapped a crew member to request a cup of ice for his son during his flight, and the attendant yelled back, “Don’t hit me!”
The conversation stopped there, but FBI officers boarded the aircraft and took the former football star out when it landed. They interrogated him before releasing him, noting that it was determined he had done nothing wrong.
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But Davis wrote on social media 17 days after the altercation, “Adding insult to injury, @united not only had me removed from their flight in handcuffs, but placed me on their No Fly List after it was determined I did nothing wrong and was released. While my family and I continue to have difficult conversations with our children, I will continue to fight for what is right for all passengers of @united.”
The 51-year-old later told NBC News, “I believe if I were not a Black man, I wouldn’t have been in handcuffs until they found out exactly what happened.”
However, United Airlines has subsequently reacted to his article by stating that they sent the update to Davis on July 14, one day after he was removed from the plane, and “rescinded” it on July 15, which they insist was “communicated to Mr. Davis’ legal team.”
The organization wrote in a statement shared with People, “It was generated due to the report of the flight attendant — who is no longer employed by United. The day after the letter was sent, we discussed with Mr. Davis’ team that it had been rescinded.”
“We have apologized to Mr. Davis for his experience and continue to review our handling of incidents like this to protect our highest priority — the safety of our customers and crew,” the airline added.
Nonetheless, the former Denver Broncos star’s lawyer Parker Stinar maintained that the airline’s timeline was “blatantly false” in an opposing statement:
“We continue to be disappointed by the inappropriate and disrespectful handling of this horrific incident by United’s communication and legal teams. This response only further reinforces the lack of care taken with the Davis Family and disregard and negligence of their well-being. Engaging in tactics in an attempt to discredit the timeline of events is worrisome, to say the least.”
In 1997 and 1998, Davis set league records for the most rushing touchdowns and was named the 1998 Super Bowl MVP. Davis played seven seasons in the NFL, all with the Broncos.
