JetBlue Flight Attendant Steven Slater Gets Bail, as Lawyer Gives Different Account of Confrontation with Passenger

By: Edecio Martinez
Topics: Daily Blotter

Steven Slater (Personal Photo)

NEW YORK (CBS/AP) Apparently JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater is not a flight risk.

PICTURES: Steven Slater, JetBlue Flight Attendant

A New York City judge has set bail - $2,500 - for the flight attendant who reportedly cursed out a passenger on an airplane public-address system, grabbed some beer from the galley and exited on an emergency slide.

Slater is charged with criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and trespassing.

It wasn't clear if Slater would go free on bail.

Police say Slater lost his temper after a rule-breaking passenger insulted him, then apparently struck the flight attendant with a bag she was removing from the overhead luggage compartment.

Upset, Slater supposedly asked for an apology, and instead, the passenger told Slater off.

Authorities say Slater then got on the plane's public address system and announced: "To the passenger who called me a (expletive expletive, expletive) you!"

Slater's defense attorney Howard Turman tells a very different story.

At the arraignment, in arguing for freeing Slater without bail, Turman said his client was under stress because his mother has lung cancer.

Afterward, he told reporters the dispute had begun much earlier, when the flight to New York's JFK International was still waiting to take off from Pittsburgh, and two female passengers got into an argument over space in the overhead bins.

That's when Slater was struck in the head, Turman said.

The dispute flared up again after the plane landed in New York when one of the women, who had been asked to gate-check her bag, was enraged that it wasn't immediately available.

"The woman was outraged and cursed him out a great deal," Turman said. "At some point, I think he just wanted to avoid conflict with her."

Upset, Slater supposedly asked for an apology, and instead, the passenger told Slater off.

Whatever prompted it, Slater then apparently had some choice - and mostly, unprintable - words for all concerned, via the plane's public address system.

Slater departed the plane (and possibly his aviation career) by opening an exit door, inflating the plane's evacuation slide, and sliding away, with beer in hand.

Slater's actions drew some sympathy from the public.

By late morning, more than 13,000 people had "liked" a Facebook page set up in his honor, and commenters were lauding the flight attendant's stand and calling for the arrest of the disobedient passenger.

40 Photos

Steven Slater, JetBlue Flight Attendant

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by dlmills August 11, 2010 2:09 PM EDT: Unfortunately flight attendants deal with rude passengers daily. This story needs to bring about some change to avoid people snapping like this in the future and possible injuring someone. Airports in general are stressful places, and I couldn't imagine working in that environment everyday.; Reply to this comment

by Busman33 August 11, 2010 12:45 PM EDT

Slater went too far. That is obvious.

Why is the name of the apparently selfish and rude passenger who would not follow to the rules of air travel not mentioned? We do nothing but validate such behavior when we don't make such people accountable as well.

I suggest you concentrate less on sensationalism and actually make a difference.

Reply to this comment


by mick7744 August 13, 2010 6:46 AM EDT: Right you are, Busman33

There are people in this world who have a grotesquely exaggerated idea of what the price of an airline ticket, a cab ride, or even a cup of coffee buys them.

They are rude, condescending and abusive because know they can be...that money confers privilege and entitlement...at least until someone decides to call them on their boorish behavior. They know they are entitled to this perk because employers like JetBlue, far more concerned about 'image' than with right and wrong or civilized behavior...cravenly worried more about not making waves than with supporting the crews who are their most direct link with the airline traveling public, tell them by this cowardly lack of support that this is so.

I think that every effort should be made to find, publicly identify and hopefully prosecute this female passenger as she seems to have flouted a number of federal regulations regarding following the instructions of the flight crew when traveling by air.

The FAA statutes that this person is apparently guilty of ignoring are already on the books, so she by law, she should be found (pretty easy to do if JetBlue cooperates) and paraded in Federal Court as well as the court of public opinion.

What she allegedly did is not merely rude and obnoxious...it's illegal!

If people like this self-entitled female thought there was even a chance of their being publicly exposed as the vulger, low-life creatures they are, I would imagine that their manners would improve dramatically. As bad or even worse than a fine or even incarceration for these pretentious sleazeballs would be THEIR OWN 15 MINUTES OF FAME!

They are overbearing bullies who feel so small...so negative and mean-spirited that they must constantly seek to belittle and demean others in a pathetic attempt to feel better about themselves, and as such they are certainly entitled to that sort of attention.


by cepe10-2009 August 11, 2010 9:06 AM EDT: Now to the woman passenger who hit the guy with a bag that is a crime there were witnesses why are the law enforcement officers not pursuing that crime? because they are sad pathetic and inconsistent police like always...; Reply to this comment


by cepe10-2009 August 11, 2010 9:05 AM EDT: actually there is no law prohibiting deploying a rubber slide from an airplane, it is not a crime, if you want to make it one go to your local politician and propose it.; Reply to this comment


by bullwinkle64 August 11, 2010 7:12 AM EDT: I'm sure he's not the first to quit a job as a flight attendent. But by deploying that emergency slide he's the most famous and the most stupid. If a passenger would of done that it would be prison for sure. An employee should be held to a higher standard. No excuses for this clown.; Reply to this comment


by PatDaddy67 August 10, 2010 8:16 PM EDT: What everyone doesn't seem to take into account is that now you have a plane with a deployed emergency slide that cannot take off. The plane must now be emptied and all the passengers and luggage transferred to another plane while a new slide is installed on the first plane. This evolution will cost the airline many thousands of dollars in materials and labor. This man?s actions, while understandable, affected many other innocent people.; Reply to this comment


by Wildwood1966 August 10, 2010 3:21 PM EDT: you have to have "been there" and "done this" not excusing him - passengers feel like FA's should be at their beck and call for everything - Female passengers are the worst! Seems like everyone's stress level was alittle too high - hope he doesn't lose his job - he coould lose days pay etc but sounds like from waht eveyrbody said he was a great FA .; Reply to this comment