Carol Ann Gotbaum: Pol's Daughter Dies After Airport Arrest

Story updated here.

Carol Ann Gotbaum, the mother of four who died in a cell at the Phoenix Airport, is the daughter-in-law of NY's Public Advocate, Betsy Gotbaum. The family is said to be monitoring the investigation.

PHOENIX (AP) - A woman late to her plane became irate, was put in handcuffs and was later found dead in a holding cell, police said. Authorities were investigating Saturday if the woman choked herself while trying to get free from the handcuffs.

Carol Ann Gotbaum, 45, of New York, was arrested Friday at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport after a conflict with gate crews who refused to allow her to board a plane, said Sgt. Andy Hill, a Phoenix police spokesman.

Comments

[Captain Joe]

The family is well connected and is very litigious. The airport will have to come up with a lot of lettuce on this one. I predict 10 million.

[nate]

As a seasoned world traveller, I had experienced this situation with cruel gate crew personnel at a NY airport. As a result, they called security on me and of course made a scene and humiliated me as I missed my important flight. Luckily for me, I knew the airline's airport manager and he rectified the situation by scolding those individuals. The women was abused of her rights as a passenger. Sky Harbor is gonna fall big when this well connected family pulls the noose around them. Bye-Bye Airport officials, better pack your bags.....

[Sarah]

It was so weird...I was sitting in the O'Hare airport this AM, and this report came onto CNN. Right in the middle of the sentence, "There was a death today in the Phoenix airport," they all of a sudden broke into the story and jumped into a commercial that said, "CNN Airport Edition." Then, right after that, they went back to CNN in the middle of another story. For whatever reason, they decided to censor that story so that airline passengers could not see it!!

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[Germaine]

As a student of conjuring I can assure you that this story of how this unfortunate woman died is not credible. Think about it. Tie your hands behind your back the way the police will handcuff you,and see if you can bring your arms up to the neck area.

Impossible. If one can, a person in this position will try to "step through" the cuffs with their legs, but I can't see how this could lead to the result suggested for this woman.

Someone needs to think this story through a little more.

[barbara]

I must agree that the airport personnel will likely be in trouble for this. The method by which they are saying she died, sounds bogus to me as well. I too was harrassed when trying to board a flight by some nasty gate agent. My daughter and I had been held up through a long security line, and just made it onto the flight. Just as we were about to board, this nasty agent challenged us for trying to bring a violin on the plane. I explained that it easily would fit in the overhead compartment, as we had flown on this type of aircraft many times. She went nuts on me, and threatened to call security! I was astonished. Fortunately, another agent stepped in, and said to leave it up to the flight attendant, who gave us no trouble at all, and of course the violin fit easily overhead. They treat people like garbage, and many of them seem to be on a power trip. It doesn't surprise me that a tragedy like this could happen. I don't blame this family one bit if they file a lawsuit if the airport personnel acted inappropriately, which probably is the case.

[Henry]

Wanna bet the video camera that is required for the holding cell was somehow disabled????????

The suggested method for strangulations is impossible. Sounds like a cerial killer working there.

The FBI needs to get on this quick.

[Kip]

Well, said, Germaine. That was my first thought. The cover story is a lie.

[Eric]

I googled her name after reading an article about her supposed accidental strangulation in hopes of finding some blog commenting on the death. I'm not surprised to read comments by Kip and Germaine. That accidental strangulation by handcuffs was not the actual cause of death seems rather obvious to me, as well. Having been arrested, I can assure you that's it's quite impossible for someone untrained as an escape artist to somehow pull your arms above your head. For an escape artist, it someone involves being able to pull your shoulders out of joint, which this woman could not possibly do.

[footballcrazy]

Ya right! Have you actually heard any details about how she tried to maneuver herself? Dislocating shoulder to windmill arms over her head. How about she tried to bring her knees up to her chest and slip her arms down and under her feet? Got stuck and locked in the position then suffocated with her head bent down into her chest and her breathing growing shallower and shallower? Obviously this woman thought who she was, she was screaming histerical the entire time. Guess all the Gotbaums think there not subject to the same rules the rest of us are

[luckyguess]

Via CNN: "According to investigators, it appeared as though Ms. Gotbaum had possibly tried to manipulate the handcuffs from behind her to the front, got tangled up in the process, and they ended up around her neck area,"

And there you have it, footballcrazy. Strangled by handcuffs getting tangled around her neck. I'm having a hard time imagining how that's possible no matter what method I envision.

[lightspeed]

On what grounds could there be a lawsuit? It sounds like she was the author of her own misfortune in each of the steps that led to her unfortunate death.

1. She was late -- her fault.
2. She argued with airport staff as if she was entitled to special treatment -- that attitude gets you nowhere. Once, when I checked in late, I was told I would have to take the next flight. Rather than argue, I profusely apologized and nicely asked the attendant if there was anything she could do to help me out. She got me on the plane, purely out of goodwill. I doubt she would have done so if I was demanding or rude.
3. She became irate with airport security -- a reasonable person knows, or ought to know, that this just makes things worse for you.
4. She tried to get out of her handcuffs -- no one else should be held liable for such an unwise decision.

No matter how litigious the family is, I doubt they would bring a lawsuit that has no merit, and would only spotlight the embarrassingly poor decision-making and bad behavior of one of their own, which are the only causes for this tragedy.

[I think its funny]

This lady got herself into a hissy, wouldnt calm down and choked herself. good riddance to her. Conspiracy theories abound here. The stupid woman thought she was better than everyone else, and couldnt control herself. Instead of calming down she tried to bring her cuffs to her front. Choking like this is possible. Remember she wasn't naked, her shirt may have been twisted up and caught with her elbows and her neck as she tried to manipulate her arms around. Basically this woman was emotionaly upset and acted like a 9 year old child.

[DaveP.]

Option one: They handcuffed her with her hands behind her back and then placed her face-down on a soft surface, such as a cell cot. In these circumstances the diaphram has no support and it is very possible to suffocate to death. Jailers are warned not to leave cuffed inmates face-down on cots for this very reason.

Option two, and far more likely: The arresting officer/s "played with her too hard" trying to get her to shut up, and then needed to come up with an excuse for stranguation and bruising.

No matter what happened, though, she was in the custody of "trained professional" officers. It was THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to insure her safety. The personnel in custody of this woman, no matter how obnoxious or annoyig she was, had a professional obligation to see to her well-being. They failed, spectacularly.

[Angel Elf]

This sound very fishy to me. How can anyone choke themselves while handcuffed? "She was very agitated and irate and angry", They handcuffed her and took her to the holding room, where she kept screaming, authorities said. So some cop goes back to the cell to shut her up and she winds up dead. Accident my ass.

[John]

The cuffs ended up around her neck according to the official report. It seems impossible for them to get "around her neck". Sounds like a case of brutality. Do not trust authority figures. Policemen, security guards, airport security...doesn't matter. They pretty much do anything and get away with it. Type in taser on youtube video. You will be amazed at how many cops have gone nazi on us. Recently a 56 year old woman was tasered more than 10 time while she was sitting in her wheelchair. Apparently old women in wheelchairs scare cops. Several of the tasers were applied for more than 2 minutes. She died of a heart attack. Wake up people, we are turning into a nazi state.

[Steve Morrison]

Why am I getting the sense that this woman was very pushy and very demanding in her life? She sounds like she always got things her way and wasn't used to having her 'authority' questioned. I feel sorry for her and her family, but I'm not sure she didn't do this to herself by throwing herself into a rage which sounds like she probably did alot in her life.

[Pressmyluck]

Why was she in handcuffs while in a holding cell? Isn't the door locked?

[Jerry Tienter]

She strangled herself with handcuffs ? I don't believe a word of it.

[joeb]

This is the kind of nut the airlines and airport people have to put up with daily. (See A&E great series AIRPORT).Actual nut cases being dealt with by airport people. Our airports have become so crowded they are now like what bus stations used to be back in the 1950s. I feel sorry for anyone who has to fly on a regular basis. But I also feel sorry for the sirport people who have to deal with these nut cases. She did herself in. No one else did.

[Debbie]

We are talking about a woman who had NO weapon! She was NOT a known criminal. Security was NOT suspicious that she may be a terrorist. Why was it necessary to keep her in handcuffs if she was in a holding cell? Whether or not she was acting in an irresponsible manner, when she was screaming, someone should have checked on her. Why did they wait until she stopped yelling to check on her? May I also remind everyone that we have not heard HER side of the story. Sometimes people take their "authority" too far, and maybe she had a right to be upset with the way she was being treated. If she was late, and it was truly her fault, and was NOT the fault of someone being irresponsible earlier at the airport, I agree she should have been respectful. People respond more positively to kindness, and throwing a fit is childish. However, we have not, and cannot hear from her, at least not until the investigation.

[Tammy in Texas]

How do you accidentally strangle yourself? How hard could it be to move your cuffed hands away from your neck area, when the cuffs are your only restraint? The reason behind this unfortunate death does not add up. It does not matter what method of math is used.

[Fred Beloit]

I see the jury has already made up its mind. Change of venue to Bora Bora might be in order.

[Old Granny]

All of the comments are based on a news report of the cause of death. It is not the first time, nor will it be the last, that the news reports are incorrect.

[Guy in Oregon]

Why was she in handcuffs while in a holding cell? Isn't the door locked?

Posted by: Pressmyluck | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 09:05 AM

If the holding cell didnt have a slot for her to put her hnds through to uncuff her after the door was closed would be a reasonable explantion. why remove handcuffs from a person in screaming fit, till after they calm down if they arent secure?

This sound very fishy to me. How can anyone choke themselves while handcuffed? Posted by: Angel Elf | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 07:37 AM

This is not the first time in history this has happened it can and does happen. People who say "Impossible, cant happen" are not informed.

We are talking about a woman who had NO weapon! She was NOT a known criminal. Security was NOT suspicious that she may be a terrorist. Why was it necessary to keep her in handcuffs if she was in a holding cell? Posted by: Debbie | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 10:10 AM

A weapon is not necceasary to commit the (misdemeanor though it may be) CRIME of disturbing the peace. It is an officers DUTY to stop the crime in progress.

Whether or not she was acting in an irresponsible manner, when she was screaming, someone should have checked on her. Why did they wait until she stopped yelling to check on her? Posted by: Debbie | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 10:10 AM

Agreed

May I also remind everyone that we have not heard HER side of the story. Sometimes people take their "authority" too far, and maybe she had a right to be upset with the way she was being treated. Posted by: Debbie | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 10:10 AM

Her side of the story: "I was late and missed my flight, because "(place excuse here)" then when customer service refused to call back the 747 with 200 other people whos travel plans i have absolutley no care for in the world, I knew that i wasnt going to have it MY way, and the airline was goint to treat me just like everyone else, why i had no recourse, but to scream and demand that the airline would do what i wanted, never mind the poor people behind me in line wanting to get their personal airline issues resolved, for all i cared they could have stood there till hell froze over while i screamed pointlessly. Then the really mean police arrived. And had the GALL to ask me to quit annoying the several thousand people around me, who are just peons anyways, and it doesnt matter that they are being subject to my childlike behaviour. So i then told the police i wouldnt calm down and there was nothing they could to ME. The policeman being ill-informed as to WHO I AM then made placed me in handcuffs, unbelievable!!. When we got to their office, i refused to calm down because, of course, being better than anyone else, this situation was intolerable for me!! As soon as they closed the door i tried getting their stupid handcuffs off of me. after all they just had no right to put these things on me in the first place. i wanted to show them that i didn't have to calm down if i didnt want to. Wouldnt you know, it not being an trained escape artist, i didnt know what the hell i was doing and ended up choking myself to death. And all we had to do to prevent this was have thing s my way at any point in the process. these people are unbeleiveable!!"

If she was late, and it was truly her fault, and was NOT the fault of someone being irresponsible earlier at the airport, I agree she should have been respectful. Posted by: Debbie | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 10:10 AM

she was late. It IS her fault.

No matter what happened, though, she was in the custody of "trained professional" officers. It was THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to insure her safety
Posted by: DaveP. | Monday, October 01, 2007 at 03:45 AM

DaveP is correct here. I agree completely, blame is 50/50 she was stupid enough to choke herself, but they shouldn't have allowed this to happen

[rwilymz]

Airport "security" is a joke; they have accomplished nothing since 9-11 which prevented a single terrorist or domestic hijacking incident. Every single plot uncovered has been accomplished by FBI or cops. The trained apes at TSA have accomplished nothing except to annoy and harrass hundreds of millions of airline passengers annually, violate their rights, and make those passengers feel guilty about standing up and demanding at least a little courtesy from them.

The LAX plot? uncovered by FBI and cops. The Kennedy plot? FBI. Reid? the "shoe-bomber"? **Passengers** subdued him.

TSA managed to shoot a guy to death who was having a panic attack, though, so I guess that's something.

TSA routinely lets guns and bombs through their screening, but manages to humiliate normal folks with pins in their shoulders or dildos in their carry-ons. TSA routinely destroys personal property while randomly searching checked luggage, and are except from responsibility. Hmmm ... authority with no responsibility ... what's that sound like?

Give trained apes authority, guess what happens when someone challenges them? This. Maybe now they'll have some responsibility.

The sooner we get rid of these baboons the sooner we'll be done with fake security.

[Dan Riehl]

updated here:

http://www.riehlworldview.com/carnivorous_conservative/2007/10/carol-gotbaum-u.html

[nowingker]

I find it very suspect that some rich upper West side woman on a tirade tried to Houdini herself out of handcuffs and 'strangled herself'...

If I was to guess, I would guess that somebody strangled her.

I would further guess that a hysterical b***h ranting and raving about missing her flight and her kids doesn't need to be put in handcuffs to begin with.

They were trying to "teach" her a lesson that you don't mess with airport security. I guess they accomplished their goal at that.

Glad to see the wingers are consistent, and they blame the woman's death on her own actions, how dare she get upset at stupid airport workers who have as they say, abandoned reason for madness. How dare she make a scene!

And, Dan as usual thinks theres 'more to the story'....maybe he's going to link her to a terrorist plot yet.

[Ben]

"They were trying to 'teach' her a lesson that you don't mess with airport security. I guess they accomplished their goal at that."
---couldn't have stated it better vnowingker !!!

[Bob]

what if she had a mental illness or a medical illness like diabetic coma/diabetic ketoacidosis or heart attack?? Why are people (including police) not taking that into account? Police, security and emergency personnel unfortunately do not take those possibilities into account and instead rush to use pepper spray, tasers, handcuffs and isolation

[Bob]

what if she had a mental illness or a medical illness like diabetic coma/diabetic ketoacidosis or heart attack?? Why are people (including police) not taking that into account? Police, security and emergency personnel unfortunately do not take those possibilities into account and instead rush to use pepper spray, tasers, handcuffs and isolation

[Grayhair]

Hissy fit or not, purposeful posturing or not, legitimate medical condition or not, fact is she died while in custody.
Phoenix airport will have for answer that.
What happened to this woman is very disconcerting. What the the real lesson here is that if it happened to the average person, it wouldn't make page 17.

[Richard]

It may not have been her fault that she was late. She made have been held up of an extended period in the TSA security line. I've noticed the wait has gotten significantly longer over the last several months.

[nowingker]

Who cares whose fault it was she was late?

If its her fault does that make it less of a problem that she threw a fit and ended up dead having....ahem.....strangled herself by getting the handcuffs from behind her back over her head and in such a position as to kill her?

[jenn]

She was hancuffed from behind, and attached to a bench with a chain, as well. Plenty of ways to get caught up and accidentally strangel herself. Also, she was on her way to rehab for alcoholism, so, she was no saint to begin with. She probably eas loaded, having her last drinks on the plane tp Phoenix before she checken into rehab in Tuscon. What normal adult runs up and down the halls of an airoprt ranting and raving..she deserved to be cuffed! She sounds like she was a danger to those around her!!!

[Jobe]

It seems that some are missing the finer points here. A mother of four is dead. What do the TSA folks tell the kids? Sorry your mom was running and yelling so we had to kill her? Over 200 taser deaths in America! Whow! That is more than handgun deaths! If running and hollering is so bad that mothers are ending up dead, what if a kids run and holler. Kill the kids too? Wake up people, today its a mother of four children! How far has it gone for this event to happen! Too far! Tomorrow it will be your mom, daughter, son, wife or you. Lethal tasering is clearly out of control as is the pshycotic behavior of poorly trained, & vetted security people. Where the hell is the everpresent video cams! How convenient! Pure Bull!

[seekeronos]

Tasers should be banned, and replaced with good old fashioned oak billy-clubs.

Nothing says "respect mah autoritah!" better than getting rapped across the spleen with a club, or the like. Tasering is much too impersonal.

[footballcrazy]

Why should authorities whose main concern is keeping the peace and protecting EVERYONE have to worry about a person's medical condition. If this dingbat had lets say high blood pressure, was a diabetic, etc should'nt that be her concern not to get so pumped up in the first place? Should a cop really have to ask someone commiting a crime or disturbance their medical history or condition? I haven't even seen this woman but I would almost bet my house that she is at least 30-40 lbs overweight, probably more, on High blood pressure medication. That she is a drunk has already been confirmed so she could even have a script for xanax which is offered as a replacement for the need to use alcohol as self-medication.

Give me a break. I am a libertarian...yes i'm actually registered as one so don't talk to or caution me about encroachment of authority or the need to peel off authority figures or government heavy handedness. I waste my votes year after year actually putting my money where my mouth is. How about the rest of you who condem cops, government, and even our soldiers and anyone else in the very hard position of making split second descision that will effect the lives of everyone involved including their own?

With freedom comes responsibility. You want respect you need to give it.

So throw away your "Dont Tase Me Bro" T-shirts and stop holding up arrogant self-centered and irresponsible anarchists as if they are some sort of heroe defenders of your free speach or civil rights. It is your eagerness to shift the blame to everyone and everything else that makes the thousands of laws we already have ineffective and lacking in deterrant power.

[rwilymz]

"With freedom comes responsibility."

Indeed.

But that's only half the equation.

With **authority** comes even more responsibility.

[America: Sucking Hard]

footballcrazy is quite the perfect example of the American Idiot: Has no facts, but assumes the woman was 40 pounds overweight (she wasn't). Claims to be a "libertarian" but has no problem with authorities using a tazer even when an accused person is outnumbered, overpowered, on the ground, and not a threat. footballcrazy needs to change name to just 'crazy'.

As for this incident, it is clear that both the gate agents and the TSA cops have been transformed into a completely not-elite fighting force in the name of terrorism. Somebody has told them that every day they are under attack from unidentifiable and unrecognizable factions of violent individuals, and they need to treat everyone as if they are a member of that faction. This includes the elderly, women, women with children, and the ill. No exclusions are to made. "Disturbances" are to be met with unyielding force and submission. Let God sort it out.

...and that's about as far as their "training" has gone.

...and the other passengers simply sit by and watch it happen, because we've been told the same thing, every day, by our lying government and our idiotic 'journalists'.

What happened here was wrong. Period. The "authorities" have killed an innocent woman. We have convicted murderers in prison for the most heinous crimes, and we pay to let them live out their lives in complete supervision, yet this mother having a bad day at an airport is sentenced to death.

Our system is broken, we all know it, and we're all just keeping our fingers crossed that we don't get stuck inside it. We do that, rather than trying to fix it, because "what can I do?". So, we deserve to live in a place where a mother of four, having a bad day because our (increasingly crappy) airlines kept her off a flight WHICH WAS STILL AT THE GATE, called their half-baked security people, who killed her.

With our apathy and our stupidty, we deserve to live in a world where killers, rapists, carjackers and pedophiles get increasingly short prison stays before they are let back out into our world to victimize us again, but normal people are tazed, killed, beaten, and broken as a normal part of our 'system'. We deserve a world where our increasingly wealthy "leaders" give our jobs and our technology to China and India, while our middle class spirals towards poverty, and we do nothing except watch the latest faux-news story about Britney, or OJ, and go tsk, tsk.

American: Sucking hard and loving it.

[Bryant]

I think they diliberately killed her after she threatened to sue them, and then tried to cover up the crime. Since they probably planned it all before they went in there and did it, they should be arrested and charged with first degree murder. This is more than a matter for a civil lawsuit. This was a capital crime. If they grabbed the lot of them, you can be sure that they would be doing some contortions of their own to see who gets to rat on the rest of their "brothers in arms" - defending our freedoms so bravely in the holding cell there.

[Mary Ann]

This is so sad. A beloved wife and mother is dead and the report out of Phoenix is that they followed standard procedures. I don't believe it for a minute. We all need to ensure that there are better and safer ways of handeling "incidents" in airports. She was not a terrorist or a criminal. She was a wife and mother seeking help with alcololism and should be alive in rehab today. Lessons must be learned.

[DAN WILSON]

WHAT'S IDIOTIC AND MORE TROUBLING IS SOME OF THE SICK COMMENTS ON THIS POST ESPECIALLY BY footballcrazy lightspeed. SHE WAS 5'7" AND 110 POUNDS. SHE WAS HAVING A PANIC ATTACK. SHE WAS LATE BECAUSE OF GOING THROUGH TSA AND THE PLANE WAS STILL PARKED AT THE GATE! WHAT'S A SCARY IS THE EROSION OF OUR INDIVIDUALS RIGHTS.

Pittel said Gotbaum was screaming that she was not a terrorist. "It was a very strange, bizarre situation," he stated. "The police made no effort whatsoever to try to calm her down, though."

Pittel characterized the police response as "excessive":

COOPER: Mel, did you think she was a threat to anyone? I mean, did you feel threatened?

PITTEL: Absolutely not. Absolutely not. She was coherent. She wasn't vulgar. She said -- she was -- she was relatively -- very steady on her feet, actually. She wasn't weaving. She didn't appear to be drunk or anything like that. She just was very demonstrative.

COOPER: You thought the police response was, what, excessive?

PITTEL: Very excessive. They rushed in and grabbed her and threw her down. Nobody ever said anything to her, "lady, hey, calm down. Take a breath. Can I help you? What's wrong?" anything like that.

Witness Harmon described Gotbaum's arrest in more detail:

One of the officers ran towards her and grabbed her, and then the two other officers came up, and they -- one threw her to the ground, and then they -- it was as if they were tackling her. One of them pulled their arm -- her arm behind her with extreme force. I thought that they were going to -- or they had separated her shoulder. It looked very, very forceful.

Anyway, and then they -- in all of this, somebody -- one of the officers leaned down and pressed on her back. And then all of them were on her almost like they did a football tackle hold, and they got the -- they got the handcuffs on her. And then an officer came up to us and said, "move it along. Move it along. This isn't anything for you to witness or for you to see." And so we reluctantly walked away.

YEA RIGHT, THEY DON'T WANT ANY WITNESSES. SEEMS LIKE WHAT'S TAKING PLACE IN BURMA. FILM IT OR DOCUMENT IT AND YOU END UP IN JAIL.

[DAN WILSON]

WHAT'S IDIOTIC AND MORE TROUBLING IS SOME OF THE SICK COMMENTS ON THIS POST ESPECIALLY BY footballcrazy lightspeed. SHE WAS 5'7" AND 110 POUNDS. SHE WAS HAVING A PANIC ATTACK. SHE WAS LATE BECAUSE OF GOING THROUGH TSA AND THE PLANE WAS STILL PARKED AT THE GATE! WHAT'S A SCARY IS THE EROSION OF OUR INDIVIDUALS RIGHTS.

Pittel said Gotbaum was screaming that she was not a terrorist. "It was a very strange, bizarre situation," he stated. "The police made no effort whatsoever to try to calm her down, though."

Pittel characterized the police response as "excessive":

COOPER: Mel, did you think she was a threat to anyone? I mean, did you feel threatened?

PITTEL: Absolutely not. Absolutely not. She was coherent. She wasn't vulgar. She said -- she was -- she was relatively -- very steady on her feet, actually. She wasn't weaving. She didn't appear to be drunk or anything like that. She just was very demonstrative.

COOPER: You thought the police response was, what, excessive?

PITTEL: Very excessive. They rushed in and grabbed her and threw her down. Nobody ever said anything to her, "lady, hey, calm down. Take a breath. Can I help you? What's wrong?" anything like that.

Witness Harmon described Gotbaum's arrest in more detail:

One of the officers ran towards her and grabbed her, and then the two other officers came up, and they -- one threw her to the ground, and then they -- it was as if they were tackling her. One of them pulled their arm -- her arm behind her with extreme force. I thought that they were going to -- or they had separated her shoulder. It looked very, very forceful.

Anyway, and then they -- in all of this, somebody -- one of the officers leaned down and pressed on her back. And then all of them were on her almost like they did a football tackle hold, and they got the -- they got the handcuffs on her. And then an officer came up to us and said, "move it along. Move it along. This isn't anything for you to witness or for you to see." And so we reluctantly walked away.

YEA RIGHT, THEY DON'T WANT ANY WITNESSES. SEEMS LIKE WHAT'S TAKING PLACE IN BURMA. FILM IT OR DOCUMENT IT AND YOU END UP IN JAIL.

[Kat]

Has anyone seen the surveillance camera video? The woman was behaving like a lunatic. Normal people trying to get somewhere on planes don't act like that. I suspect drug use caused her to die.

[Jerome]

I like to be a lawyer on that case, for the Plaintiff...its just a matter of how much the drunk is going to get...sad, but true.

[Damon]

Bottom line... I agree with DaveP.

'No matter what happened, though, she was in the custody of "trained professional" officers. It was THEIR RESPONSIBILITY to insure her safety. The personnel in custody of this woman, no matter how obnoxious or annoyig she was, had a professional obligation to see to her well-being. They failed, spectacularly.'

[Tom H. Weaver]

I "love" the whiners who expect security people to be mind-readers:

"THAT screaming, running, wild person I see in the distance is a very nice wife and mother having a panic attack -- don't bother her."

"THAT screaming, running, wild person in the distance is a nice guy, but he MIGHT hurt himself -- try and calm him down."

"THAT screaming, running, wild person in the distance is a terrorist -- take him down, FAST!"

But they don't have these psychic abilities, and have to deal with every wildman and wildwoman the same way until they're able to sort-out who he/she is and what they're up to.

If any of the whiners here have the psychic gifts needed to simplify things and make sure the harmless screaming idiots get better treatment than the destructive screaming idiots, please apply for the job and prove it. If not, shut the hell up.

[marcia siegel]

after the altercation ms gotbaum walked away. the airport geniuses then call the police. the incident was over and it was restarted by the ariport security.

i think all of you who think we should sheepisly comply with every false authority figure are fools. give in to everything and guess where you end up in a fascist regime. there are many instances where the police and certainly the ged untrained, stupid airport security are wrong and do not act in your best behalf. grow up and think for yourself.

[Tom H. Weaver]

When you go into an airport, Marcia, you're in their yard and they play by their rules. Nobody's going to make up a new and different set of rules that you're more comfortable with, just for you. If you think you won't want to comply with the rules of a certain place, you should save yourself, and the security people, and everybody in the vicinity, a lot of aggravation and just stay the heck out. Looks to me like this Gotbaum chick may have had the same sort of 'tude ("Bring the plane back and toss somebody off so *I* can get on").

I'd love for the family to say to the airport security people, "You shouldn't have left her alone." WTF??? Her family sent her on a trip involving changes, etc., etc., ALONE. If she shouldn't have been "alone," why'd the family dump her off at the New York airport with a "Goodbye and good luck" and send her on her way across the country -- ALONE?? What a joke. If I was one of those security people, I'd be able to go home and sleep like a baby.