Selma Blair, who is accused of being physically abusive on a weekend flight and kicking an officer who took her to the hospital and a nurse after, was arraigned Monday in New York City on two counts of assault.
The “Cruel Intentions” actor is accused of kicking a Port Authority police officer, and later a nurse at a hospital, after she was removed from the Delta Air Lines flight to an ambulance around 11:50 p.m. Sunday, according to a court document filed in Queens County.
Blair, 54, was arraigned on two counts of second-degree assault Monday evening, and bail was set at $20,000 cash or $60,000 bond, the Queens District Attorney’s Office said.
Two attorneys for the actor did not immediately respond to emailed requests for comment Monday night.
In court, Blair’s attorneys said that it was due to a medical emergency, and that she has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and Parkinsonism, pool video of the hearing showed.
“We do not believe, your honor, that this is an intentional assault,” Shawn Barnes, an attorney for Blair, said at the hearing. He said that prior to the flight, she had missed several doses of a medication, and that she also fell and hit her head on the flight.
Blair left court Monday wearing sunglasses and a white hooded sweatshirt. She did not speak to reporters.
A prosecutor said in court that if convicted on the top count, she faces two to seven years in jail. The case was adjourned until Jan. 19, the DA’s office said.
The alleged incident on the plane occurred on a flight from Los Angeles to New York City, a spokesperson for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said. Two flight attendants reported injuries, and one was taken to a hospital, the spokesperson said.
The charges in Queens are unrelated to anything that happened on the plane and concern only the two alleged assaults after Blair was taken off, a prosecutor said at the arraignment.
While being moved from John F. Kennedy International Airport to an ambulance on a stretcher, Blair freed her leg from the stretcher straps and kicked the Port Authority officer “repeatedly about the face, neck and chest,” according to an affidavit from a different Port Authority officer.
Later, at around 2 a.m. Monday, a nurse at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center said Blair kicked her in the chest, according to the document.
A representative for Blair confirmed in a statement that she was taken to the hospital following the flight.
“Selma experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct,” the representative said. “Upon landing, she received immediate medical attention and is currently in stable condition.”
Blair’s representative did not describe the medical emergency. Blair revealed in 2018 that she had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disorder that attacks healthy cells in the central nervous system, according to the National Institutes of Health.
The Federal Aviation Administration also said it would investigate a “passenger disturbance” on the flight.
The FBI said it does not comment on ongoing investigations, but said it had been contacted regarding a “potential assault aboard a flight that arrived into JFK.”
Delta did not identify Blair in response to a request for comment but said it has “zero tolerance” for unlawful behavior in a statement Monday.
“The safety of our customers and crew always comes first,” it said.
Blair had an incident on a plane in 2016 involving her having a verbal outburst accusing someone of wanting to kill her, TMZ reported at the time. She was taken off the flight on a stretcher and transported to a hospital when the flight landed in Los Angeles.
She later admitted having mixed alcohol and medication in a statement to Vanity Fair, apologizing for her behavior.
“I take this very seriously, and I apologize to all of the passengers and crew that I disturbed and am thankful to all of the people who helped me in the aftermath,” Blair said at the time. “I am a flawed human being who makes mistakes and am filled with shame over this incident.”
