By Alex Jensen
SEOUL
A Korean Air flight attendant has launched legal action against the airline and its jailed vice president over an infamous “nut rage” incident, local media reported on Wednesday.
In a law suit filed in New York, Kim Do-hee claims Cho Hyun-ah, who is appealing a one-year prison sentence imposed last month for breaking aviation law, verbally and physically attacked her on the Dec. 5 flight from New York to Seoul, the Korea Herald said.
Cho – the eldest daughter of the airline’s chairman and chief executive – lost her temper when Kim served her a pre-flight snack of macadamia nuts in a paper bag instead of on a plate.
Kim’s lawyers, Florida-based Weinstein Law Firm, issued a statement on Wednesday outlined their case for compensation and punitive damages.
Kim, 27, was pressured to lie about the incident "as part of an orchestrated effort to try and rehabilitate Cho's public image," according to legal papers filed in New York.
Cho, also known as Heather, was subjected to widespread public vitriol over her outburst, widely viewed as an example of the corrupt and spoiled behavior of South Korea’s business elite.
The lawsuit accuses 40-year-old Cho of hitting, shoving and threatening Kim before ordering the plane to return to its departure gate, where a senior flight attendant was removed from the aircraft.
"A court in South Korea has already found Cho criminally responsible for her actions onboard the aircraft that day,” company founder Andrew Weinstein said in a statement quoted by the Herald.
He added that he was "very confident that the legal system in New York will likewise find Cho civilly responsible for the extensive damage that she has caused to Kim’s career, reputation and emotional well-being."
The statement said that attempts to resolve the dispute privately had failed.
During Cho's trial in Seoul last month, Kim testified she could not refuse Cho’s orders due to her power within the airline.
She told the court that her job with Korean Air was the realization of a childhood dream but she felt she could not return following the incident.
