Criminal charges considered in New York, Texas after death of dog on a United Airlines flight
Prosecutors in two states are reviewing the death of a dog on a United Airlines flight to see whether animal cruelty charges are warranted.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office in Houston, where the flight originated, and the Queens District Attorney’s Office in New York, where it landed, are examining the incident and whether they have jurisdiction.
“We are currently reviewing the facts to determine if there is a prosecutable case,” a spokeswoman for Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
In Texas, the Harris County Animal Cruelty Taskforce is investigating, said Carvana Cloud of the district attorney’s office.
“We’ll review the evidence and apply the law,” Cloud said.
The district attorneys offices are weighing charges after a dog named Kokito died in an overhead bin on a flight Monday. Kokito was placed in the overhead bin after a flight told the dog's family they had to remove it from the aisle to clear the path.
United, however, says the flight attendant did not hear the passenger's warning that there was an animal in the container.
"We have learned that the customer did tell the flight attendant that there was a dog in the carrier. However, our flight attendant did not hear or understand her, and did not knowingly place the dog in the overhead bin," United said in the statement. "As we stated, we take full responsibility and are deeply sorry for this tragic accident."
United said it was investigating the incident. It also said it would implement a new policy in April in which it will issue brightly-colored tags to customers traveling with animals.
