 |
Carol Gotbaum,
five-foot-seven, 105 pounds, 45
years old, arrived
late for her flight to an
alcohol rehabilitation
center in Tucson. The
airplane had been detached
from the jet way and had
started to taxi. Gotbaum
was offered a later flight,
but chose to demand that the
plane stop and she be
allowed to board. She threw
a tantrum, yelling,
screaming, and running around
the ticketing area. She is
now dead. |
|
|
Carol
Anne Gotbaum, was the
stepdaughter-in-law of New York
City’s public advocate, Betsy
Gotbaum apparently believed herself to be
empowered with the ability to bully
all others into serving her demands
and disregarding rules and
procedures. |
|
Arizona
authorities are studying the
mysterious death of the Manhattan
woman while in police custody at the
Phoenix airport. |
|
Gotbaum
was apparently sober on the flight
from Manhattan to Phoenix. A friend
who was supposed to meet her at the
terminal for the flight to Tucson
failed to show up. Airline workers
said that she had lunch alone at the
terminal, got drunk and didn't hear
her connecting Tucson flight being
called. A witness said that she was
jittery while going through security
and that when she was pulled aside
to be patted down, Gotbaum said, "I
have to get my flight. I'm late for
my flight". |
Phoenix police
said that Carol Gotbaum became
agitated and disruptive at Phoenix'
Sky Harbor International Airport
just after missing a mid-afternoon
flight to Tucson. Sergeant Andy Hill
stated:
"We did receive a call that she
was very loud – yelling and screaming, running around the
concourse area. Two officers responded to that location. They
contacted Ms. Gotbaum. They could not calm her down. There was
probable cause to arrest her for disorderly conduct by
disturbing the peace, which they did. It was very difficult for
them to get her handcuffed, but they did not have to
pepper-spray or Tase her or anything else." |
|
Sergeant
Hill added that one of the officers took Ms. Gotbaum to a holding office where about seven other police employees
were working. Gotbaum was moved to a holding room
with her hands cuffed behind her back. |
|
Sergeant Hill said police
procedure require that detainees be checked at least once every 15
minutes. After Gotbaum had been in the room 5 to 10 minutes
and stopped screaming, officers found her
unconscious with her cuffed hands close to her neck. Officers
tried using an automated external defibrillator followed by cardiopulmonary resuscitation to revive her but were not
successful. Local fire department members arrived, but
could not revive her. |
|
People
familiar with Carol Anne Gotbaum's
history said she had long-term
mental health issues. Reportedly she
attempted suicide twice in the last
year. She also had tried a short
detox program at Manhattan's St.
Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital. That
program but it did not work. |