Man faces up to 20 years in prison after disrupting flight
A Virginia man faces up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to interfering with the crew on a United Airlines flight last year
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A 29-year-old man who struck a flight attendant and tried to open the cockpit door during a flight to Florida has pleaded guilty to interfering with a flight crew and could face 20 years in prison.
Prosecutors said Thursday that passengers noticed that Kameron C. Stone of Fairfax, Virginia smelled strongly of alcohol, refused to stay in his seat, and pretended to shoot a gun at passengers during a United Airlines flight from Dulles airport in Virginia to Pensacola Florida, last April.
As the plane began to descend for landing, Stone tried to open the cabin and cockpit doors. When a flight attendant attempted to stop him, Stone grabbed her shoulders and shoved her into a wall, bruising her chest, face, arm and shoulder, according to court documents.
Three passengers, including an off-duty federal marshal, restrained Stone, and three mini-bottles of vodka fell from his pocket during the tussle, according to prosecutors. Police met the plane when it landed.
Sentencing was scheduled for April 28 in federal district court in Pensacola.
Unruly passengers have become a bigger problem since the start of 2021. The Federal Aviation Administration said this week that it has received 394 complaints from airlines this year after getting nearly 6,000 reports last year. Most of the incidents are related to passengers not wearing face masks, and alcohol is involved in many cases.
Last week, Delta Air Lines CEO asked the federal government to create a new no-fly list for passengers who disrupt flights, similar to a federal list for people on a terrorism watch list.