The FBI has communicated directly with American Airlines and other airlines in recent years about the growing risk of in-flight sexual assaults of passengers by fellow passengers, particularly on “red eye” overnight flights when the cabin is dark and crew and fellow passengers are less active. Further, American Airlines had notice of a 2023 sexual assault complaint against a particular passenger, Texas-based Cherian Abraham. Yet, American Airlines continued to let this perpetrator fly, putting profits over passenger safety and directly putting Barbara Morgan at risk the night of April 24, 2024. American’s decisions and actions directly led to her sexual assault, and then further traumatized her by ignoring her complaints after the attack. American Airlines allowed this predator to fly and to assault another woman after Barbara Morgan, until the FBI stepped in, and he was criminally charged.
Barbara Morgan’s “red eye” flight from San Francisco to Dallas was supposed to be joyous, a trip to celebrate her son’s new job and new home in Dallas, but instead of having a restful and peaceful flight, Barbara was placed in a middle seat next to a passenger who was previously reported to American Airlines for allegations of sexual abuse against a female passenger. During the flight, with the cabin lights dimmed, this predator passenger sexually assaulted Barbara. While she yelled at him to “Stop,” she did not receive assistance from the flight crew, and went into freeze/survival mode when she realized the passengers around her were asleep, had headphones on or were unaware of what was happening. She became terrified to engage the perpetrator and chose to report the abuse as soon as she got off the plane, only to be repeatedly dismissed and re-traumatized by American Airlines employees who refused to help her. Further, after being contacted by the FBI, she learned that this perpetrator had prior reports of sexual violence onboard an American Airlines flight and has since been charged by federal officials for the sexual assault of another female passenger. Several other similar complaints have been made about him.
Today, national civil rights trial firm Romanucci & Blandin and California-based National Sexual Assault co-counsel Nadrich Law Corporation and The Law Offices of Michael A. Kahn announce the filing of a lawsuit holding those responsible accountable.
Case Background
Barbara Morgan had no idea that the man sitting next to her on the “red eye” flight was a reported sexual predator. American Airlines says publicly that it prioritizes the safety of its passengers, yet it took no precautions to protect Barbara from a known offender, who was seated inches away from her in a dark cabin. American Airlines had been warned recently of the growing epidemic of in-flight sexual violence, particularly on overnight flights.
Barbara did not select her seat, 28B; American assigned it to her. The Defendant was seated in 28A.
American Airlines had been warned about the behavior of Cherian Abraham, a corporate professional from Texas, yet the airline chose to do nothing and still allowed him to fly. Nearly one year after Barbara’s assault, Abraham was arrested by the FBI for allegations of assaulting at least three women. Barbara believes that some of those assaults could have been prevented if American Airlines had taken her report seriously.
When the cabin lights were dimmed after takeoff, the defendant began rubbing his arm against Barbara’s torso and breasts, which caused her to lean away from him. Undeterred, he then rubbed her thigh with his hand and touched Barbara’s genitals. Barbara yelled, “Stop!” However, no one from the flight crew came to her aid. Most passengers were asleep or wearing headphones. In a state of shock, Barbara froze, uncertain how to protect herself, and feared the escalation of the situation, not knowing what this man might do. Her emotional distress for the remainder of the flight was severe, trapped beside her assailant.
Upon landing, she immediately approached the American Airlines gate agent, telling them what happened and pointing out her assailant. The agent blamed Barbara, asking why she did not say something in-flight. Barbara explained she feared retaliation from the perpetrator or anger from fellow passengers if the plane needed to be rerouted because she reported trouble. The gate agent ultimately said there was nothing they could do and told Barbara to file a complaint on their website.
Barbara followed American’s instructions and reported her assault in writing the same day, and only received a generic response that someone would follow up. They never did. Barbara went so far as to write a complaint directly to American Airlines’ Director of Customer Relations, Vice President of Reservations and Service Recovery and the CEO of American Airlines. She also emailed American Airlines Customer Relations expressing her concern over the lack of a meaningful response and warning that this perpetrator would continue to abuse girls and women if the airline did not take action. The airline continued to do nothing, and when someone from American finally called Barbara, they blamed her for not reporting the conduct in mid-air. Because of their conduct, Barbara has experienced deep shame, frustration, anger, sadness and fear.
In March of 2025, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington announced charges against defendant Cherian Abraham for his subsequent sexual assault of another female passenger on American Airlines. The charges referenced previous sexual assaults on flights by Mr. Abraham, including Barbara’s, noting the first report was made in 2023, before Barbara’s flight in April 2024.
This civil lawsuit aims to hold both American Airlines and Cherian Abraham responsible for the traumatic assault on Barbara. There must be accountability for the systemic failure at American that exposed unknowing passengers to a predator.
Lawsuit Details
The lawsuit was filed April 24, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Defendants in the complaint include American Airlines and Cherian Abraham, individually. The complaint demands a jury trial.
Plaintiff is Barbara Morgan of California. The plaintiffs are represented by the Chicago-based national trial law firm Romanucci & Blandin, LLC and Partner Daisy Ayllón, Senior Attorney Sarah M. Raisch and Attorney Patrick J. Driscoll, along with Attorney Jeffrey Nadrich, Esq. of California-based Nadrich Law Corporation and Attorneys Michael A. Kahn and Jeffrey Garfinkel, Esq. of California-based Law Offices of Michael A. Kahn.
Claims in the lawsuit include:
- Negligence against American Airlines
- Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress against American Airlines
- Fraudulent Concealment against American Airlines
- Sexual Battery against Cherian Abraham
- Gender Violence against American Airlines and Cherian Abraham
- Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress against Cherian Abraham
- Violations of the Bane Act against Cherian Abraham
“American Airlines has been aware for years that sexual assaults on overnight flights are becoming more and more prevalent. Yet they allowed Cherian Abraham to become a serial predator under their watch and on their airplanes, and when our brave client reported her terrifying experience, they brushed her off and blamed her for their utter indifference to her safety. When will corporations finally believe women? What needs to happen for corporations to finally take women’s safety seriously?” said Senior Attorney Sarah M. Raisch, Romanucci & Blandin.
“The FBI and American Airlines passengers have repeatedly warned the airline that inflight sexual assaults are occurring on American Airlines flights—and American Airlines has had every opportunity to take those warnings seriously. Instead, they’ve turned a blind eye, leaving passengers vulnerable at 30,000 feet. This isn’t just a failure of policy; it’s a failure of basic responsibility. American Airlines must stop ignoring the alarm bells and take immediate, decisive action to protect its passengers like Barbara Morgan,” said Attorney Patrick J. Driscoll, Romanucci & Blandin.
“The safety and dignity of passengers must come first. Much more must be done to prevent in-flight sexual assaults,” said Attorney Jeffrey Nadrich, Nadrich Law Corporation.
“The numerous ways in which the plaintiff’s complaints about sexual abuse were dismissed and the ways she was belittled, questioned, and delayed by American Airlines are completely inexcusable. In this day and age, global corporations like American Airlines are very aware of how they should properly handle sensitive issues, what a trauma-informed response looks like and the need for swift response and investigation. We call on American to do better, be better, and explain to the flying public how they will address these traumatic situations in the future,” said Attorney Michael A. Kahn, The Law Offices of Michael A. Kahn.
“It is hard to describe how traumatizing it is to have a stranger touch you like that – on a crowded plane, in a confined space, with nowhere to go. I felt exposed and yet completely invisible. I felt paralyzed. When the flight landed and I reported what happened, I hoped American Airlines would step in and, at the very least, tell me they would do better to protect other women. Instead, I was met with cold responses and blame, as if I had done something wrong. That sense of shame has stayed with me. I’m sharing my story because I don’t want other women to feel as alone or dismissed as I did. I’m sharing my story because it is time that corporations do better so my daughter, our daughters don’t have to be assaulted," said Barbara Morgan, plaintiff.
Original source can be found here.