Local Attorney Sues American Airlines

M.A. Dworkin

St. Croix - Local St. Croix Attorney Marina Leonard of Colianni & Leonard LLC, filed a lawsuit on November 7, 2025, against American Airlines (AA) and its regional partner Envoy Air, for plaintiff Gloryanna Samuel, claiming Ms. Samuel was abandoned at the American Airlines  gate when she needed wheelchair assistance. Ms. Samuel then missed her flight and was allegedly forced to sleep at the airport overnight, a predicament that worsened her preexisting medical condition.

Ms. Samuel was traveling from St. Croix to Tampa, with a connection in Miami when the incident occurred in April 2025. The filing states that Ms. Samuel is in need of wheelchair assistance when she travels by air due to a number of medical conditions, including diabetes, for which she receives regular dialysis treatments for high blood pressure.  

Ms. Samuel’s ticket reservation included a request for wheelchair assistance in which Envoy Air is contracted with AA to provide wheelchair assistance for AA’s passengers.

According to the complaint, Envoy Air did provide a wheelchair for Ms. Samuel when she first arrived at Miami International Airport for her connection to Tampa. But after her arrival, Envoy allegedly “abandoned her in her wheelchair” at the gate, causing her to miss her connecting flight to Tampa. 

AA then rebooked her on another flight that was not scheduled to leave until the next morning. Ms. Samuel made a request for a hotel room where she could stay for the night, but neither American Airlines nor Envoy Air granted her request. Ms. Samuel was then allegedly forced to stay overnight at the airport and sleep on a chair in a cold public room. This resulted in “severe physical discomfort” and worsened her preexisting conditions.

“As a result of being forced to sleep in a chair and the lack of proper assistance, Ms. Samuel suffered swelling in both feet and eyes, experienced pain in her left arm from having to use it as a headrest, and experienced elevated blood pressure, which was particularly dangerous given her pre-existing medical conditions,” the complaint reads.

Claiming “negligence,” the filing also seeks damages for the “physical pain and suffering, emotional distress and mental anguish” that the incident allegedly caused Ms. Samuel. The document also claims Ms. Samuel required additional medical attention and thus, she has accumulated medical expenses as a result.  

“This case shows how little respect and concern American Airlines has for its customers,” said Ms. Samuel’s attorney, Marina Leonard of Colianni & Leonard LLC. “This type of incident should never have happened. We intend to get justice for Ms. Samuel,” Attorney Leonard told the St. Croix Times when she was interviewed about the matter.