Although some parents balk at the idea of sending their children off to travel alone, there are those who are confident enough in their children’s ability to fend for themselves.
Nevertheless, this next story will make them think twice.
An unaccompanied 13-year-old girl, who was on her way home after a visit to his father, was sexually harassed during a flight, and according to a Washington Post report, the ordeal began shortly before the plane took off.
On the half-empty American Airlines flight from Dallas to Portland, Oregon, Chad Cameron Camp decided to choose a middle seat, a seat right next to an unaccompanied minor.
Despite flight attendants’ offer to move him to a different seat, Camp refused. “No, I’m fine,” he reportedly said.
Camp attempted to make small talk, but the girl refused to engage. Then he began leaning toward her, forcing her to lean away.
He also used a magazine he was reading to brush up against the girl’s arm.
“Each time he turned the page he used his elbow to brush up against the victim’s shoulder and upper arm area. The victim attempted to move away from Camp’s physical contact, and each time she withdrew, he would laugh,” the complaint states.
“After finishing with the magazine, Camp leaned toward the victim to place the magazine in the seat pocket in front of the victim. Camp instead dropped the magazine on the victim’s shoes.”
Then, when a flight attendant returned for a drink service, she saw the man’s hands on the girl’s crotch. She also saw “a single tear coming down the victim’s cheek.”
“This was 30 minutes of hell for this young lady,” said Brent Goodfellow, the lawyer representing the girl. He also refused to believe that the girl had been “saved” by a flight attendant.
“If I have my tray table down or my seat back two inches during the improper time, those guys are going to be on me immediately,” said Goodfellow in the Washington Post report. “This girl got abused for 30 minutes and no one was to be found.”
It is believed the she had been touched inappropriately at least 15 times. She also tried to push his hands off of her repeatedly.
When the flight attendant confronted Camp, the man pretended that everything was fine, and when the flight attendant tried to move him to a different seat, he initially moved one seat over.
The flight attendant insisted, and he was reassigned to the back of the plane while the girl was moved near the front.
Find out how to keep your unaccompanied child safe on flights
“As soon as the plane reached its gate in Portland, the girl was ushered off so that she could meet her stepfather and give a statement to authorities,” the report said. “When Camp exited the plane, he was detained by Port of Portland officials and then arrested by FBI agents.”
According to a report by the Oregon, Camp appeared briefly in U.S. District Court in Portland, and on his behalf, his attorney entered a not guilty plea.
The outcome of the case doesn’t matter, said Brent Goodfellow. The incident have life-long consequences for the victim.
“She doesn’t want to be on an airplane ever again,” he said. “This is going to affect the rest of her life.”
Keeping children safe on flights
Children will encounter threats to their safety at any given time, but more so when they are by themselves without adult supervision. That’s why it’s important to take certain measures if they will be put in such situations.
Here are some tips from Air Safe for children who are travelling alone:
- Consider the maturity of the child. “If your child is old enough to travel alone on public transportation, is able to spend time away from family in an organised setting…then that child is probably old enough to travel unaccompanied on a flight that includes a change of planes.”
- Discuss appropriate behaviour with your child. “If another passenger acts in an inappropriate way, be sure that your child knows to inform a flight attendant or other airline representative.
- Review the airline’s policies. “Take special note of their policies for escorting children at connection airports and accommodations in the event that the flight is delayed or diverted.”
- Escort the child to the seat. “If possible, escort the child onto the aircraft and check the area around the seat for hazards such as heavy carry on items in the overhead storage bins.”
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