The mother of a 14-year-old boy who died on an American Airlines flight in 2022 has filed a lawsuit claiming he could have been saved if not for a “defective” defibrillator and an untrained flight crew.
Melissa Arzu, mother of the late Kevin Greenidge, filed the lawsuit last year in New York, but had to transfer the case to Fort Worth because that is where the airline is based.
It claims a flight crew was slow to respond to a crisis that caused the teen to go into cardiac arrest and had difficulty even turning on the automated external device immediately afterward.
They also failed to administer an electric shock intended to restore the boy’s heart rhythm, the lawsuit claims, effectively leaving him to die on board.
The federal lawsuit further claims that the defibrillator was defective, not “fully and adequately charged” as required by the FAA. This, Arzu argues, “caused, enabled and/or accelerated the premature death of” her son, leaving her alone to pick up the pieces.
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Melissa Arzú, 45, filed the lawsuit last year in New York, but recently had to move the case to Fort Worth because that is where the airline is based.
Kevin Greenidge’s mother, his son died on the flight in June 2022, after suffering cardiac arrest.
“After Kevin died, I never heard from American Airlines,” the 45-year-old said in a filmed interview after filing the new lawsuit Monday.
“It made me feel desperate,” she continued, speaking from her apartment in the Bronx.
‘I want answers from American Airlines. I want American Airlines to take full responsibility for (his) death.
“I don’t want this to happen to a child or a family again.”
The lawsuit tells the rest of the story, albeit its side, and how American allegedly failed to “ensure that the automated external defibrillator (AED) and its mobile battery were fully and adequately charged” for the June 2022 flight.
The boy, the document states, had been flying from Honduras to Miami with his uncle when he suddenly became ill, after which “American Airlines flight personnel did not respond in time to (his) medical emergency.”
Additionally, they also allegedly failed to “timely transfer Greenidge from his window seat to the rear of the plane, where assistance could be rendered,” and also failed to “request the assistance of medically trained passengers on board.”
“When the flight crew finally attempted to use the AED on Greenidge,” the mother’s attorneys wrote that they “were unable to properly operate the machine or the machine did not function properly.”
A federal lawsuit filed by the Bronx woman claims that a flight crew was slow to respond to the crisis and had trouble even turning on the automated external device afterward.
The boy had been flying from Honduras to Miami with his uncle when he suddenly became ill, the document states, adding that “American Airlines flight personnel did not respond in time to (his) medical emergency.”
The eyewitnesses allegedly added that “every time the AED gave a ‘clear’ warning for people to step back… so a shock could be administered, the shock was not delivered.”
“Instead, the machine just kept warning to continue CPR.”
A subsequent analysis of airline records for AA Flight 614 ultimately found that “American Airlines flight personnel were not trained to use the type of AED machine that was on board,” a direct violation of federal law.
‘If AA Flight 614 had been properly equipped with the necessary and functional medical equipment… and if airline personnel had responded timely to Greenidge’s medical emergency… (he) would not have experienced the intense… ‘pain he (suffered)’, the lawsuit states.
In a statement issued to Insider in March, an American Airlines spokesperson said the airline was reviewing the details of the lawsuit, which has since been reassigned to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.
“Our thoughts are with Ms. Greenidge and her loved ones,” the airline said at the time.
Meanwhile, the lawsuit seeks unspecified damages, since the FAA has federally required defibrillators on all passenger planes since 2004.
‘If AA Flight 614 had been properly equipped with the necessary and functional medical equipment… and if airline personnel had responded timely to Greenidge’s medical emergency… (he) would not have experienced the intense… ‘pain that he (suffered)’, the lawsuit states
In fact, American was the first U.S. commercial airline to install them on its planes in 1997, and made painstaking efforts to train flight attendants in their use.
The devices are so important that if they are deemed missing or “inoperative” on a commercial aircraft, the craft simply will not be shipped, a section of the FAA’s official website states.
“Each airline should develop a protocol for the use of automated external defibrillators,” the agency writes, adding that a “minimum” requirement for takeoff is an “operational” deliberator.
This was not the case on June 2, 2022, Arzu argues, and his lawsuit further states that “as a direct result of the actions and failures of American Airlines (that day), Greenidge passed away at the young age of 14.” ‘
Her lawyer, Hannah Crowe, said in a video statement sent to DailyMail.com this week that while it took American months to even acknowledge her client’s scruples, she is hopeful a jury will side with her.
“Texas juries are tough, but fair,” he said of the newly filed lawsuit.
“Our jury will hear what happened to Kevin,” he added.
Her lawyer, Hannah Crowe, said in a video statement sent to DailyMail.com this week that while it took American months to even acknowledge her client’s scruples, she is hopeful a jury will side with her.
As he spoke, a subpoena was issued for American to appear in federal court in Texas. Released on Monday, the filing has yet to elicit a response from the airline, which has 60 days to respond. If they do not do so, a judgment will be issued in favor of the carrier by default.
“You’re going to hear the facts of this case and be shocked that American Airlines would put its passengers, especially children, in this kind of danger.”
As he spoke, a subpoena was issued for American to appear in federal court in Texas.
Released on Monday, the filing has yet to elicit a response from the airline, which has 60 days to respond.
If they do not do so, a judgment will be issued in favor of the carrier in default, for the reparation demanded in the lawsuit.
DailyMail.com has contacted American for comment.