At a Glance
- Court
- Multnomah County Circuit Court
- Case Type
- Civil Lawsuit Filed
- Parties
- Mirna Gonzalez, on behalf of Gabriella Gonzalez v. Michelle Brannan, Alaska Airlines, and Port of Portland
- Jurisdiction
- Multnomah County, Oregon
- Date
- 2019-02-25
- Status
- Filed
- Amount
- $1.1M
A mother filed a $1.1 million civil lawsuit in Multnomah County Circuit Court on behalf of her 5-year-old daughter after a pit bull, brought into Portland International Airport as an emotional support animal, attacked the child and left her with permanent facial injuries [1][2]. The complaint names three defendants: dog owner Michelle Brannan, Alaska Airlines, and the Port of Portland [1][3].
The incident occurred on Dec. 18, 2017, when Mirna Gonzalez and her family, residents of Pasco, Washington, were at Gate C7 of Portland International Airport waiting for a connecting flight to Texas [1][6]. According to the Washington Post, Brannan brought the pit bull through the Alaska Airlines ticketing process and Port of Portland security checkpoints without the animal in a crate, kennel, or other secure container [1]. The lawsuit claims Brannan should have known her animal had "vicious propensities" and that Alaska Airlines allowed her to bring a dangerous dog into the gate waiting area without being confined or trained [1]. The Gonzalez family's attorney, Chad Stavley, told OregonLive that Brannan reportedly carried what appeared to be a form letter from her therapist, though it was not specific, noting, "It didn't say what kind of animal" and "It was just a generic 'animal.'" [1][2]
The lawsuit states that Gabriella suffered injury to the muscles, tendons, bones, nerves, and soft tissue of her face, eye, eyelid, tear duct, and lip, and that all injuries and their consequences are permanent [1][3]. Gabriella required surgery to repair complex facial lacerations and a damaged tear duct [2][4]. The suit seeks $100,000 for past and future medical costs and $1 million for the child's pain and suffering [2].
The complaint presses distinct negligence theories against each defendant. The suit claims the Port of Portland is at fault for allowing a dangerous emotional support animal into the airport and through security without the dog being crated, and that Alaska Airlines is at fault for permitting Brannan to bring the animal into the gate waiting area when it was neither a trained service animal nor crated [3]. Alaska Airlines's own policy at the time did not require emotional support animals to be in crates, stating only that such animals must be leashed and under the owner's control, while the Port of Portland took the position that the dog should have been crated and cited Brannan for failing to do so before the attack [2].
The case arrives amid intensifying regulatory scrutiny of emotional support animal policies across the airline industry. The U.S. Department of Transportation has since revised its Air Carrier Access Act regulations to define a service animal strictly as a dog individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability, and no longer considers an emotional support animal to be a service animal [10]. That rule took effect on Jan. 11, 2021, and under current DOT regulations, airlines are no longer required to accommodate emotional support animals or treat them in the same manner as service animals [14]. Alaska Airlines declined to comment on the litigation [2][1].
References
[1] The Washington Post. (2019, February 28). An emotional support pit bull mauled a 5-year-old girl at an airport terminal, lawsuit says. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/02/28/an-emotional-support-pit-bull-mauled-year-old-girl-an-airport-terminal-lawsuit-says/
[2] Fox News. (2019, February 27). Emotional support animal mauls 5-year-old at Portland Airport, lawsuit claims. https://www.foxnews.com/travel/emotional-support-animal-mauls-5-year-old-at-portland-airport-lawsuit-claims
[3] DogsBite.org Blog. (2019, March). Million Dollar Lawsuit: Mother of Child Mauled by an 'Emotional Support' Pit Bull at Portland Airport Sues. https://blog.dogsbite.org/2019/03/million-dollar-lawsuit-emotional-support-pit-bull.html
[4] Newser. (2019, March 1). Face of Girl Gabriella Gonzalez Scarred After Encounter With Pit Bull at Alaska Airlines Gate at Portland International Airport in Oregon. https://www.newser.com/story/271923/bite-from-emotional-support-pit-bull-brings-11m-suit.html
[10] U.S. Department of Transportation. (2020, December 2). U.S. Department of Transportation Announces Final Rule on Traveling by Air with Service Animals. https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/us-department-transportation-announces-final-rule-traveling-air-service-animals
[14] U.S. Department of Transportation / Air Carrier Access Act. Summarized via: Herb M. Milgrim, P.A. Emotional Support Animal Airline Regulations. https://www.floridacondoattorneys.com/emotional-support-animal-ban-by-airlines/