Selma Blair was taken into custody after a Delta flight from Los Angeles arrived at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport late Sunday, following reports that a passenger had been physically abusive and two flight attendants were injured. Authorities said the 54-year-old actor and one flight attendant were taken to a hospital for evaluation after the plane reached the gate.
Flight Attendants Hurt, Plane Held at the Gate
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said officers responded to the aircraft after it arrived at JFK, where Blair was taken into custody. Blair and one flight attendant were brought to a hospital for evaluation. News4JAX reported the plane was at the gate when officers took Blair into custody. Delta did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Blair’s publicist had not responded, the outlet reported.
The Port Authority Police Department responded to a call around 11 p.m. Sunday about a passenger reported to have been physically abusive, according to NBC New York. The station reported that two flight attendants said they were injured: one had a bite mark and the other a cut. Blair was taken to Jamaica Hospital for evaluation after landing, NBC New York reported.
Representative Points to Medical Emergency
A representative for Blair said in a statement to media outlets that a medical emergency led to the alleged conduct. In a statement given to CBS News New York, the representative said, “Selma experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct. Upon landing, she received immediate medical attention and is currently in stable condition.” Delta told the same outlet it has zero tolerance for unruly or unlawful behavior, adding that the safety of its customers and crew always comes first.
Authorities said the FBI is investigating. NBC News has reported that Blair publicly disclosed her multiple sclerosis diagnosis in 2018 and had a separate incident involving a verbal outburst on a plane in 2016, after which she was taken to a hospital.
A Career Spanning Decades, With Disability Advocacy
Blair built her career on major roles in Cruel Intentions in 1999, Legally Blonde in 2001, and Hellboy in 2004, per the News4JAX report. In recent years she has also advocated for disability rights, and in 2023 she joined President Joe Biden at the White House to celebrate the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. She had appeared publicly as recently as September 23, arriving at Variety's Power of Women event at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, according to the same report.
The Federal Aviation Administration investigates unruly-passenger incidents that airline crews report to the agency, focusing on cases that cite violations of FAA regulations or federal laws, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The agency's data has shown a steady flow of cases referred for federal review; an August 2023 announcement from the Federal Aviation Administration said total referrals to the FBI had topped 270 cases since 2021.
How Flight-Incident Reports Are Handled
The Federal Aviation Administration says the rate of unruly-passenger incidents has fallen by more than 80 percent from record highs in early 2021. In a separate update, the agency reported 915 unruly-passenger cases from Jan. 1 to June 9, 2024. Those figures describe broader trends and do not establish what happened in Blair’s case, according to the FAA and its 2024 update. The FAA and FBI say the FAA can refer unruly-passenger cases to the FBI for criminal case review, and that the FBI investigates crimes within its jurisdiction aboard commercial flights; the agencies’ joint statement describes that process, not the facts or outcome of this case. In a separate prosecution, Christina Elizabeth Szele pleaded guilty to interfering with a flight crew after a 2008 JetBlue flight was diverted to Denver; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado said the case involved assaults on two airline employees. That past case does not predict the outcome of Blair’s.
