Unless you’ve been living under a rock — or been stranded on a tarmac — you’ve heard about the JetBlue flight attendant who flipped out, popped open the emergency door, grabbed some beer from the galley and escaped via the plane’s emergency slide. Well, the attendant finally came before a judge for arraignment this morning.

The judge set bail for the attendant — who faces charges of criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and trespassing — at $2,500.

The attendant’s attorney said that his client has been stressed because his mother is ill with lung cancer.

He also stated that the argument that sparked the incident began before the flight from Pittsburgh to NYC even took off. According to the lawyer, everything started when two female passengers got into a dispute over the overhead bins. It was at this point, says the lawyer, that the attendant was hit in the head with the bag.

When the plane landed at JFK, tempers flared up again when the one woman whose bag had to be gate-checked became upset that she wouldn’t be getting her bag back immediately.

“The woman was outraged and cursed him out a great deal,” said the attorney for the attendant. “At some point, I think he just wanted to avoid conflict with her.”

Meanwhile, the Smoking Gun has a copy of the criminal complaint filed against the attendant. In the document, it claims that the unapproved use of the emergency slide “did cause a dangerous condition to the ground crew working below.” Additionally, the complaint states that the cost to JetBlue of replacing the emergency slide is at least $25,000.

NY judge grants bail for angry flight attendant [Seattle PI]
Heroic JetBlue Flight Attendant Charged [Smoking Gun]

Thanks to SteveDave for the Smoking Gun tip!

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