NRT briefing
Actress Selma Blair faces charges for kicking nurse and officer after plane incident
Based on reporting by BBC News.
The Brief
Actress Selma Blair has been charged with two additional counts of assault for allegedly kicking a police officer and a nurse after being removed from a Delta flight in New York. The charges were filed in state court following her arrest late Sunday after an incident aboard a flight from Los Angeles to New York.
Blair, 54, was issued a federal summons for assault within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the US. The two new charges stem from alleged incidents in an ambulance and at a hospital, where she allegedly kicked an officer and assaulted a nurse.
In court, her attorney Shawn Barnes asked for leniency, citing her "body of work" and calling her "the gold standard." The judge denied the request, saying Blair "should not get special treatment because she is a celebrity." Blair pleaded not guilty and was released on bail set at $20,000 cash or $60,000 bond. Her next state court hearing is scheduled for 19 January.
Her representatives said she experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct. Two flight attendants were hurt, one taken to hospital, according to the New York Port Authority.