The man spent 17 days in a New Mexico jail after American Airlines wrongly accused him of shoplifting at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.
Lowe boarded a flight at the airport. He was on vacation in New Mexico when he was arrested for a crime he didn't commit.
According to the lawsuit, Lowe was held in Quay County Jail for more than two weeks at the peak of the COVID-19 epidemic. Lowe didn't know what he was charged with until after he was released.
Scott Palmer said that he had never heard of this fact pattern in his life or career. It can happen to anyone if it happens to him.
The events that changed Lowe's life began when a stranger shoplifted from a store inside Dallas-Fort Worth Airport. The suspect boarded the flight at the airport. The Fort Worth-based airline was ordered to send over the footage and passenger manifest after they reported the theft.
According to the lawsuit, American Airlines gave police a single passenger's information, which was Lowe's. A spokesman for American Airlines could not be reached.
Lowe was on the flight as a stop on his way to Reno.
Lowe had long gray hair and was wearing a mask. The video shows a man with a buzz cut wearing no mask and carrying items.
Lowe was identified by American Airlines as the shoplifter seen in the video. Police issued arrest warrants for Lowe based on the information they had.
Lowe wasn't aware of any of the events with American Airlines or police when he was in New Mexico. Someone at a Fourth of July party called the police because they didn't think Lowe was related to the problem. Everyone's information was taken when police arrived. Lowe had two warrants from Tarrant County when they pulled him up. They took him into custody.
He didn't know where Tarrant County was or the last time he had been in Texas. No one would let him know what the warrants said about him.
Mr. Lowe told his friends, who were only visiting New Mexico, not to worry, it would all get cleared up quickly. He wasn't right.
Lowe was taken to Quay County Jail, where he insisted they arrested the wrong person. His protestations seemed to be antagonizing the jailers.
He said that Lowe was stripped naked and forced to cough as he was searched.
The suit says that he was put into a general population quark where he was surrounded by people accused of violent crimes.
Lowe was at risk of catching Covid-19 because of fear. The facility was contemptuous of the health, safety and well-being of its inmates because no one wore a face mask. The 10th highest death rate in the country was found in New Mexico. According to the suit, Quay County Jail in New Mexico was one of three jails in the state where correction officers refused to be tested for COVID-19.
Lowe was traumatised by the conditions at the jail for 17 days. He didn't get much rest because of his constant state of fear of confrontation and physical abuse. The violence in the packed unit rose over any trivial act. A streak of blood was on the wall for days after a young man was punched in the face.
It was painful for Mr. Lowe to have to sit in silence and not help someone who was vulnerable.
Lowe and other men begged officers for the man to see a doctor, but they weren't listened to. Lowe still wonders if the man is alive.
Lowe was taken to a judge after he was released from jail. He didn't know why he was there. He was told by the judge that he could either wait for Texas authorities to pick him up or waive his right to be extradited. Lowe decided to waive his right to be extradited based on the court's suggestion.
He was returned to the jail.
The suit says that after the court appearance Lowe'ssuffering became most acute as he appeared to be without any end in sight. He didn't know why he had been arrested or when he would be freed.
Lowe was told he was going to be released after 17 days in jail. He was sent out of the jail without being told why he was there.
Lowe waited at a bus stop while walking to a Mcdonald's. He tried to clean himself in the bathroom but was kicked out. There was a bus that broke down on the way to Flagstaff. It took Lowe two days to get to his house.
Mr. Lowe allowed himself to sob until he couldn't stand anymore.
Lowe began to try and understand why he had been put through this. He reached out to a detective at the DFW Airport police department. He did not know why he had been mistaken for another person.
According to the suit, the detective told Lowe that he would be arrested if he didn't show up for court the next day.
Lowe tried to convince the detective that he wasn't guilty, but the detective wouldn't let him know what the charges were. Lowe was admonished by the detective for not going to his court hearing.
Lowe was looking for a lawyer. Lowe searched for a long time for one that he could afford. Lowe's attorneys asked the police at the airport to compare photos of Lowe with the footage of the man who broke into the store.
The charges against Lowe were dropped after police compared the photos.
Lowe's life hasn't been the same despite the charges being dropped.
The arrest of Lowe cast a pall over his view of the world, according to the suit.
Lowe is a tour guide in the canyon. He used to love sleeping outside, packing light, and the feeling of a shower after days without one, but now they remind him of what he lived in for 17 days.
He suffers from an ongoing state of hyper vigilance that has robbed him of any ability to rest or relax, because he is afraid someone will accuse him of something he did not do.
The suit says that Mr. Lowe exposed his anus, saw a young prisoner get punched in the face, and tried to care for him at the jail.
The wrongful arrest caused Lowe significant economic damages. During his time in jail, he was unable to work and gave a two-week tour of Alaska to five people for $6,000 per person. Lowe had to pay for the group's return at his own expense. He was not able to work until September 2021, because the arrest warrants were still active after he was released. The uncertainty of the situation led to the departure of long time employees of Lowe's.
Lowe is accusing American Airlines of being negligent for wrongly identifying him. The airline chose to conduct its own negligent investigation instead of giving the police the list of passengers they wanted.
Palmer blamed AmericanAirlines. The detective wouldn't have issued a warrant without American doing what they did. The disclosure of his name is the beginning of the whole thing.
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