Actress Selma Blair pleaded not guilty to assault charges after allegedly biting and punching flight attendants on a Delta flight, her lawyers blaming missed MS medication.
Selma Blair entered a not-guilty plea Monday to two counts of assault tied to a New York-bound Delta Air Lines flight and the chaotic hours that followed on the ground.
The 54-year-old “Legally Blonde” and “Hellboy” star now faces the prospect of years behind bars if convicted, while her defense says a medical emergency, not intent, drove the alleged violence against crew, a nurse, and a police officer.
The U.S. Sun reported that Blair was investigated by the FBI after allegedly biting and punching flight attendants and trying to open an aircraft door while the plane was still in the air.
Port Authority Police responded around 11 p.m. Sunday to a call about a “physically abusive passenger” at JFK Airport after the Delta flight landed.
Law enforcement identified the suspect as Selma Blair, a 54-year-old woman. Officers took her into custody and moved her to a hospital for evaluation.
"The suspect was identified as Selma Blair, a 54 year-old woman."
Two flight attendants reported injuries. One went to the hospital for further evaluation.
"Two flight attendants also reported injuries, and one was transported to the hospital for further evaluation."
Working cabin crew do not sign up to get bitten or punched at 30,000 feet. An attempt to open a door in flight turns a passenger outburst into an aviation safety problem for everyone on board.
Fox News reported the case stems from Delta Flight 938 from Los Angeles to JFK, and that Blair was arraigned on two counts of second-degree assault for conduct on and after the flight.
A court affidavit alleges she kicked nurse Ashley DeLeo in the chest at Jamaica Hospital. It also alleges she repeatedly kicked Officer Maria Suarez in the face, neck, and chest.
New York Post reporting cited in coverage of the case said Blair allegedly broke out of restraints in an ambulance and kicked a police officer. Prosecutors separately allege the nurse was kicked after Blair arrived at the hospital.
First responders and hospital staff became the next targets in the state’s account, after the plane was already on the ground.
Attorney Shawn Barnes told the court the episode was not intentional. He said Blair has multiple sclerosis, had missed doses of a powerful medication that controls severe neurological symptoms, worked exhaustive hours, and may have fallen and hit her head.
"This was not an intentional assault."
Barnes said those factors, joined with altitude, produced severe confusion and disorientation.
"These factors, coupled with the altitude, resulted in a state of severe confusion and disorientation."
A representative for Blair told TMZ she experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct, got immediate medical attention after landing, and was in stable condition.
TMZ also obtained audio from the removal scene in which a woman presumed to be Blair can be heard screaming “NO!” repeatedly and “please no,” with an alarm in the background.
Medical history can explain a crisis. It does not erase alleged injuries to flight attendants, a nurse, and an officer, or the need for a court to sort intent from conduct.
Judge Indira Khan set bail at $20,000 cash and $60,000 bond. Blair is due back in court on January 19, 2027.
Coverage of the case has put the top exposure at up to seven years if she is convicted on the state assault counts. Sources have also described a possible federal violation for assault in special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, framed as not a felony but carrying up to a year. No date has been set for any federal case.
Fox News coverage noted the judge’s assessment that Blair poses a risk, a finding that sits beside the defense’s medical narrative and the not-guilty plea.
Celebrity status does not put anyone above the rules that keep crews and passengers safe. Missed pills and hard workweeks may belong in a mitigation argument. They do not revise what prosecutors say happened to the people who had to restrain her.
Air travel only works when every adult on the plane stays in their seat and keeps their hands off the crew. Courts exist for the nights when that bargain breaks.
