Two of the four aviation officers responsible for dragging Dr. David Dao off a United Airlines flight in April have been fired, according to NBC News.
Chicago’s Inspector General Joseph Ferguson reported that an aviation security sergeant and an officer were fired, one served a two day suspension, and another voluntarily left his position on the force after the incident.
Ferguson’s report also revealed that two of the security officers submitted falsified information in an attempt to hide the severity of their actions, stating one officer “made misleading statements in two reports” while the other “made material omissions in a report.”
The identities of the officers were not released in the report.
Thomas Demetrio, Attorney for Dr. Dao, responded to the report in an emailed statement:
“It is unfortunate the conduct of these two City aviation employees has resulted in their losing their jobs. However, this is not a day of celebration for Dr. Dao, who is neither vindictive nor happy about Mr. Ferguson’s findings.
“There is a lesson to be learned here for police officers at all levels. Do not state something that is clearly contrary to video viewed by the world. But for the video, the filed report stating that only ‘minimal’ force was used would have been unnoticed. Simply put, don’t make stuff up.
“Also, the Inspector General’s report should become the poster child for why passengers should always maintain the right to videotape mistreatment of all kinds. Our cell phones are the best deterrent to ensure mistreatment becomes a rarity.”
Dao and United reached an amicable settlement earlier this year; additionally, United was cleared of any responsibility for the incident in September.
