DALLAS — A North Texas jury determined Wednesday that American Airlines isn’t responsible for an alleged sexual assault of flight attendant Kimberly Goesling by a British celebrity chef working with the carrier during a company trip in 2018.
The jury of nine women and six men agreed with Goesling’s claims that a sexual assault occurred, but not her allegation that the airline encouraged London-based chef Mark Sargeant’s advances, said Robert Miller, a lawyer for the flight attendant.
The verdict in Tarrant County denies Goesling nearly $26 million in damages that she and her legal team were seeking. Miller said the team is working on an appeal.
But for now, Goesling walks away with nothing after a high-profile battle against the Fort Worth-based carrier and hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on the case, Miller said. She worked as a flight attendant for American Airlines for more than 30 years before retiring in December.
“The decision was very difficult for Kimberly,” Miller said. “She was stoic about it but on the inside, she’s dying.”
American Airlines spokeswoman Lindsey Martin said the company is committed to “providing a safe and comfortable environment for everyone who works at our airline.”
“The jury’s decision confirms that American does not tolerate inappropriate sexual conduct of any kind,” Martin said.
The trial lasted more than 10 days and the jury spent another two days deliberating over the 13 questions that included whether or not American’s team in Germany, where the incident occurred, was acting on behalf of the airline and whether the airline acted improperly following Goesling’s report of the assault.
Goesling sued American Airlines last year after saying she was sexually assaulted by Sargeant, a frequent collaborator with Gordon Ramsay who was hired by the airline to help design menus for first-class passengers flying between the United Kingdom and the United States.
Goesling’s lawyers said Sargeant forced his way into the flight attendant’s hotel room during a work trip to Germany and after a night of heavy drinking by Sargeant and American Airlines managers.
In a video deposition, Sargeant said he was encouraged by an American Airlines manager, Brett Hooyerink, who drank with Sargeant and told him that Goesling was interested in him.
Miller said the jury decided that Hooyerink was not acting on behalf of American Airlines.
Goesling also claimed that American retaliated against her after she reported the assault and conducted a flimsy investigation that failed to determine if managers on the trip should be punished.
American Airlines’ legal team argued that the airline wasn’t responsible for the rogue actions of a contract employee, saying Sargeant was responsible for his conduct that evening. Lawyers also tried to discredit Goesling’s sexual assault claim and show that her behavior after the incident was not consistent with a victim.
“I’ve spent a lot of time defending people and I was amazed at how they attacked her,” Miller said.
Sargeant admitted he was “out of control drunk” to American Airlines investigators and text messages between Sargeant and Goesling showed the chef apologizing for his actions, though the messages didn’t explicitly say what happened.
American Airlines was the only defendant in the trial. Goesling’s lawyers said she tried to report the case to legal authorities in Germany, but was unable due to the language barrier. She also claimed that law enforcement in Texas turned her away because the assault happened overseas.
Sargeant was a part of Goesling’s original lawsuit, but the two sides previously reached a confidential settlement. Sargeant has not returned requests for comment.
Goesling waged a high-profile fight against American Airlines in the months leading up to the trial, publicly disclosing her name and engaging media outlets, including a video interview posted on YouTube with former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson.
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