Former Alaska Airlines pilot Joseph Emerson has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an October 2023 attempted in-flight engine-shutoff incident. Emerson had tried to disable the engines of a Horizon Air passenger flight while riding off duty in the cockpit. The former pilot admitted in court that he had taken psychedelic mushrooms prior to boarding the flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, which was diverted to Portland after he reached for the engine fire suppression handles, according to NBC News.
Emerson entered a no-contest plea in an Oregon state court to reckless endangerment and to first-degree endangering an aircraft. He was sentenced to 50 days in jail, which he has already served, as well as to five years’ probation, 664 hours of community service and payment of more than $60,000 in restitution. He still faces federal sentencing.
“What Joseph Emerson did was reckless, selfish, and criminal,” Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Eric Pickard said. “We should remember how close he came to ruining the lives of not just the 84 people aboard Flight 2059, but all of their family members and friends as well.”
Emerson pleaded guilty in federal court to interference with flight crew members and attendants. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, although his attorneys are expected to argue for probation at his Nov. 17 sentencing. Prosecutors, meanwhile can recommend up to a year in prison under Emerson’s current plea agreement, according to BBC News.
Emerson told the court he takes responsibility.
“That doesn’t make this right,” Emerson said. “What happened was wrong and should not have happened, and I bear the responsibility for that.”
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