Let’s pretend the story reflects reality, and doesn’t omit to mention the offended party’s behavior that got him deplaned. “The passenger” (presumably the one with the pet) offered to switch seats. For Holcomb to be told to take a seat in the back implies there WAS A SEAT. Why didn’t the airline simply put willing pet passenger in it, and leave Mr. Holcomb in the seat he had paid for? Absent good reason for not doing so, the winged bus company deserves this hassle.
The story doesn’t say but perhaps the pet owner had bought a seat for the animal in a three seat row. Perhaps the pet owner had bought a ticket in first class because of the wider seats to accommodate the animal. Perhaps the pet owner had specified the need to be assigned business in the first row behind the bulkhead for extra room. Could be the pet owner had also requested a seat near a door if they had a physical disability. Of course, there’s always the ADA on their side. The back of the plane doesn’t have the room as the above seats have. With any of those reasons, Holcomb just lost the case.
Of course, he had the right to sit in the seat he’d paid for but apparently he failed to request a seat away from dogs. If he didn’t, he lost there, too.