Selma Blair Pleads Not Guilty to Assault Charges After Delta Flight Incident
The actress was arraigned in Queens on two counts of second-degree assault after she was accused of injuring two flight attendants, a police officer and a nurse. Her lawyer says a medical emergency, not intent, explains her actions.
Actor Selma Blair pleaded not guilty Monday night to two counts of second-degree assault stemming from an incident on a Delta Air Lines flight from Los Angeles to New York, in which she was accused of injuring two flight attendants, a police officer and a nurse.
Blair, 54, was detained by Port Authority police around 11 p.m. Sunday after the jet parked at the gate at John F. Kennedy International Airport, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. She was arraigned late Monday at a court in Queens, where her lawyer entered the plea on her behalf. A judge set bail at $20,000 cash or $60,000 bond and scheduled her next court date for January.
According to charging documents cited by the Associated Press, a police officer taking Blair to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center said Blair pulled a leg from stretcher straps and kicked her repeatedly around the face, neck and chest, causing serious pain and substantial swelling. A nurse moving Blair at the hospital later said Blair kicked her in the chest, causing substantial pain. The two counts of second-degree assault cover the alleged attacks on the officer and the nurse.
The FBI also issued Blair a notice charging her with assault over her actions aboard the aircraft, a federal law enforcement official told the AP on condition of anonymity. Those charges will be handled in petty violations court in federal court in Brooklyn; no court date has been set.
What happened on the flight
Two flight attendants reported injuries, and one was taken to a hospital, the Port Authority said. The plane’s pilot asked the control tower to have medical personnel waiting at the gate to treat bite marks and a bloody nose. “It sounds like the disruptive passenger also bashed her head on the bulkhead or something like that,” the pilot told the tower, according to audio posted on the ATC app, the AP reported.
Blair and one of the flight attendants were taken to a hospital for evaluation. Delta said in a statement it “has zero tolerance for unruly or unlawful behavior, as the safety of our customers and crew always comes first.” The FBI is investigating.
Lawyer cites medical emergency
Blair’s attorney, Shawn Barnes, told a judge the actions were not intentional. He said Blair, who has multiple sclerosis, had missed doses of a medication that controls severe neurological symptoms, and that she had boarded the flight after a long day of work and hit her head during the flight, leaving her in what he described as a state of severe confusion and disorientation.
A representative for Blair said she “experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct” and is now in stable condition.
Blair is best known for roles in “Cruel Intentions” (1999), “Legally Blonde” (2001) and “Hellboy” (2004). She revealed her multiple sclerosis diagnosis in 2018 and has since become an advocate for disability rights. In 2016, she apologized after mixing alcohol with medication and blacking out on a flight from Cancun to Los Angeles.
Reporting based on coverage by The Associated Press and CNN.
