Celebrities
Trial Set to Begin Against Megachurch Pastor’s Wife
Posted Aug 7, 2008 5:59 AM CST
By Molly McDonough
A suit filed by a flight attendant who claims that the wife of Houston pastor and televangelist Joel Osteen assaulted her in 2005 on a flight from Houston to Vail, Colo., is set for opening statements today.
The suit claims Victoria Osteen, who is a co-pastor of Lakewood Church, pushed Continental Airlines flight attendant Sharon Brown into a bathroom door and elbowed her because of a stain on her first-class seat, the Associated Press reports.
The defendants characterized the suit as silly, but Brown's lawyers counter that they hope the suit will show that "celebrity status doesn't take precedence."
Victoria Osteen was fined $3,000 by the Federal Aviation Administration in the incident for interfering with a crew member. The incident caused the flight to be delayed for more than two hours.
A jury was ultimately seated after several in the pool reportedly said they were starstruck by the Osteens.
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Comments
Elaine
Aug 7, 2008 8:34 AM CST
with everything going on this one takes the cake, it’s really ashame that people take every chance they can get to get easy money and sue people in the public eye, it has gotten to point that people don’t want to fly because if you look at Stewardess or Steward wrong, they accuse you of being out of control or assaulting them and then of course they want to sue you for mental and physcial abuse, a so called shove and she has hemmorroids, and if shove could shake her faith, she had none in the beginning, please who ever this Judge is , let it.
CDS
Aug 7, 2008 1:12 PM CST
I say the trail should go forth. I am sick of celebrities who think the world is at their feet. TV evangelists are no different from Hollywood celebrities. What prosperity gospel TV evangelists do in the name of God is reprehensible.
glenna hendricks
Aug 8, 2008 3:52 AM CST
The stewardess is doing the public a favor. The whole plane load was delayed while a woman who obtains for herself considerable income for supposedly representing God showed her anger over something of little consequence. Thanks, plaintiff, for this service to the public. This matter should be exposed and handled for the benefit of the public.
JW
Aug 8, 2008 5:20 AM CST
OK Elaine, let’s try it your way and allow people to shove one another into door and treat people poorly, if they do not think there are any repercussions. Then the next time you are shoved or abused, you will just have to take it on the chin, just like this flight attendant (they have not been called “Stewardesses” for a long, long time!).
Actually, I think Osteen should have been arrested in addition to being sued. Assault is assault. We can’t push people and neither can she.
NJ lawyer
Aug 8, 2008 6:53 AM CST
Even assuming there was contact - there were no assault charges brought -, what are the flight attendant’s damages?
RH
Aug 8, 2008 8:39 AM CST
The suit is for the extreme emotional distress (and hemorrhoids) that has resulted in Ms. Brown’s losing faith in religious leaders. Agree with Elaine. As a former pilot, the FAA fine process is based on what the crew says. Finally, for those who want to assume this megachurch, “give-me-your-money” evangalist actually did what she’s accused of, know that this is not Ms. Brown’s first such complaint.
Charles
Aug 8, 2008 9:31 AM CST
Ms. Brown is suing for 10% of Ms. Osteen’s net worth. It is not hard to see the incentive to blow an incident out of proportion when it involves someone of great net worth if you think that any encounter with that person can get you 10% of their net worth. This matter isn’t being exposed and handled for the benefit of the public. There was plenty of media coverage at the time of the incident. This matter is going forward because of an opportunistic plaintiff and a lawyer who hasn’t bothered to crack the Civil Practice & Remedies Code to learn about caps on punitive damages in the State of Texas.
And so it goes.
Doneil
Aug 8, 2008 11:04 AM CST
Mrs. Osteen should definitely have apologized for her actions and taken full responsibility. Instead of acting like an adult she acted like a spoiled child. Any injury incurred was undoubtedly minor, and a sincere apology would have gone a long way toward resoving the matter. BUT, since it wasn’t offered, and Victoria tried to act like she did “the Christian thing,” a suit was probably justified. I hope the flight attendant “takes her to the cleaners.” Flight attendants take plenty of abuse and a little payback now and then is pure justice.
NCLawyer
Aug 8, 2008 12:44 PM CST
NJLawyer: It’s been a long time since I had torts, but as I recall, a civil case for assault can be brought whether or not criminal charges are filed. And even nominal damages for “offensive touching,” my first year torts professor’s favorite synonym for batter, can support a claim for punitive damages.
What the actual complaint says or whether 10% of this servant of God’s income exceeds the cap is not something I have researched. I have witnessed a lot of unnecessary rudeness from entitled passengers on airplanes though, and am always heartened that flight attendants demonstrate the forebearance that they do.
Civil remedies are an imperfect solution, but people like Mrs. Osteen do not seem to respond to anything but a hit to the old net worth. Rather than demonize the plaintiff and the plaintiff’s lawyer as “opportunistic,” I prefer to think that Mrs. Osteen walked on the wrong little person this time.
NCLawyer
Aug 8, 2008 12:45 PM CST
and yes, that should be “battery,” not “batter.”
TP
Aug 9, 2008 9:52 PM CST
Christians are hypocrits.
NCLawyer
Aug 11, 2008 1:18 PM CST
I wouldn’t say ALL Christians are hypocrits. More like, “Those who pray in public have their reward.” Matthew 6:5
I’ll bet it’s been a while since Mrs. Osteen read that one.
D. Riley
Aug 13, 2008 1:17 PM CST
No weapon formed shall prosper!!!
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