CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) - The family of a man who died in a baggage vehicle accident at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in 2019 has filed a lawsuit against the city of Charlotte and American Airlines.
Texas law firm Hilliard Martinez Gonzales filed the lawsuit last month in Mecklenburg County Superior Court on behalf of Erika Vernon and Leon Hudson, the parents of Kendrick Darrell Hudson, The Charlotte Observer reported on Monday.
Police said in a news release last August that Hudson, 24, was transporting baggage on an airport vehicle called a tug when he made a hard right turn to avoid hitting luggage that had fallen on the tarmac, but the tug hit it and rolled over.
Hudson worked for Piedmont Airlines, a regional subsidiary of American Airlines.
The accident occurred near Concourse E. Donielle Prophete, vice president for Communications Workers of America Local 3645, said poor visibility at parts of the concourse has led workers to dub it “Death Valley.” Prophete told the newspaper that there hasn’t been any change in lighting since Hudson’s death.
The lawsuit alleges that the airport failed to ensure that there was adequate lighting around the gates at various concourses and failed to repair or replace dim or burned out lights and lighting equipment.
“The Airport’s number one priority is the safety and security of our passengers and the men and women who work here,” Charlotte Douglas airport said in a statement responding to the lawsuit. “The Airport and our partners constantly review safety and security measures.”
The airport commissioned a lighting study last year, and airport officials said they received the completed evaluation this month, but have not made any changes yet.
“We are now working to confirm the lighting study’s recommendations will pose no threat to aircraft movement or safety on the ramp before implementing any changes,” the airport said in a statement.
The lawsuit says the city’s acts “not only were negligent, but willful and wanton displaying a conscious and/or reckless disregard for the safety of airport personnel,” including Hudson.
The North Carolina Department of Labor is investigating the death, but has not yet released its findings, spokeswoman Dolores Quesenberry said last week.
American Airlines spokeswoman Crystal Byrd said no cause has been determined yet by the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Division.
Hudson’s parents have scheduled a news conference at the airport Tuesday afternoon with lawyer Alex Hilliard and civil rights attorney Ben Crump.
Crump is best-known for representing the families of Trayvon Martin, a black teen fatally shot in Florida in 2012, and Michael Brown, a black teen fatally shot by a white police officer in Missouri in 2014.
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