Former flight attendant feels overwhelmed and tubby

During a visit at the Queens Criminal Court to report on his substance abuse treatment progress, former JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater said, “I am a little overwhelmed.” He added, “I’m trying to stay focused and organized and keeping my priorities straight,” according to the NY Post.

The former flight attendant was ordered into counseling as part of a plea agreement to two counts of criminal mischief. He also lost his job and has agreed to pay JetBlue $10,000 to replace the chute he used to slide to freedom after an altercation with a passenger. There’s been no indication of whether he has to reimburse the airline for the Blue Moon beer he took with him.

The judge advised that Slater not “get worn out with all your activities” and suggested that he “have a good holiday season.”

Outside the courthouse, a photographer paid Slater a compliment on his appearance, but the latter didn’t agree, saying, “I need to lose 25 pounds.”

Steven Slater’s home burglarized by partner’s brother: insult added to injury

If Steven Slater was going to use the cash under his mattress to repay JetBlue, he needs to put together another plan. The day after he plead guilty to a felony charges (which could be knocked down to misdemeanors in year), it was revealed that the former flight attendant‘s home was robbed.

John Rochelle, Slater’s partner’s brother, is accused of having absconded with a laptop, printer and microwave on October 14, 2010, reports MSNBC. Rochelle is waiting to be arraigned on second-degree burglary chares. Queens District Attorney Richard Brown is calling it a “crime of opportunity.”

Howard Bragman, Slater’s publicist, said the former flight attendant didn’t have anything to say about it.

As part of his plea agreement, Slater has to pay JetBlue $10,000 to compensate for the costs he generated when dropping the emergency slide.

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Former JetBlue Flight Attendant Steven Slater pleads guilty

For putting lives at risk – rather hypocritical for a person who’s supposed to be in the “safety business” – he faced felony charges for criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and trespassing. He faced up to seven years in prison.

By pleading guilty, Slater will only serve a year in a mental health and alcohol/substance abuse treatment center, instead of the one-to-three-year sentence he was staring down. Upon successful completion of the program, the charges are knocked down to misdemeanors. He’ll also have a year of probation.

[Image credit: AP Photo/Louis Lanzano]


As expected, the notorious nutjob who popped the emergency slide after an altercation with a passenger has entered a guilty plea. Former JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater grabbed some beer for the road before sliding to glory.

According to MSNBC, the district attorney indicated that alcohol was involved in the incident on the JetBlue plane, even before he grabbed the Blue Moons for the drive back to his Queens home.

Slater said after leaving the courthouse that he found the public interest “surprising, unexpected and encouraging.”

Really? Surprising? Unexpected? I can see how he’d call it encouraging … if he was only paying attention to the airline business supporters who believed him to be a hero. Meanwhile, it looks like dealing with passengers really did drive him to insanity.

Flight attendant Steven Slater may avoid jail

Steven Slater, the JetBlue flight attendant who popped the slide and grabbed a beer after an altercation with a passenger, is scheduled to appear in court today. According to a report on Fox 5 New York (broadcast), he’s expected to plead guilty. The Associated Press reports that he may be eligible for an alternative sentencing program, such as treatment or community service (depending on his mental health evaluation). Maybe this means he won’t be a hero to flight attendants and other aviation professionals any longer.

In case you missed it:

The incident occurred Aug. 9 aboard a JetBlue Airways Corp. flight from Pittsburgh that had just landed at Kennedy International Airport. Slater got on the plane’s loudspeaker, cursed at passengers, then slid down the plane’s emergency slide.

The crazy flight attendant no longer works for JetBlue, having resigned. A career in reality television seems unlikely. I do wonder, though, if he’ll celebrate Halloween dressed as himself.

Costume store develops angry flight attendant Steven Slater costume


I haven’t put on a costume for Halloween in years, but I think that’s going to change this year. I want to spend an evening as flight attendant hero irresponsible nut Steven Slater. In case you spent the summer living under a rock, Slater’s the flight attendant who tangled with a passenger (you know, one of the people he was responsible for protecting), popped the emergency slide, grabbed some beer from the plane and drove home to Queens.

He also hired a high-powered publicist, lied about his career and wanted his old job back before kicking around a future in media.

Ricky’s NYC, a major costume store with multiple locations, has developed a flight attendant costume that USA Today reports is clearly based on the nutjob who put lives on the ground at risk.

Here are the details on this particular getup:

The costume — shirt, tie, bandage (for the head wound reported to have been caused by a feisty passenger’s unwieldy carry-on luggage), brewskis not included — retails for $39.99 at Ricky’s stores and online at ricky’shalloween.com. It’s billed as the perfect outfit for making an early, and memorable, exit from a Halloween bash.

Fortunately, you won’t have to go to Queens after making your departure.