PORTLAND, OR- Fox News Digital reports that a former Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to shut down the engines of Horizon Air flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco, California, while high on psychedelic mushrooms, pleaded guilty or no contest to all charges Friday while expressing “regret” for putting the passengers and crew in danger and damaging his profession.
The plea agreement allowed Emerson to avoid further jail time, the Associated Press reported, citing his attorney, Noah Horst.
In October 2023, the Horizon Air Embraer 175, operating as a regional jet under Alaska Airlines, was forced to divert to Portland after Joseph Emerson attempted to cut the engines on the flight on which he was riding in the cockpit jumpseat. He was restrained by the flight crew and handed over to authorities when the plane landed in Portland.
“What Joseph Emerson did was reckless, selfish, and criminal,” Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Eric Pickard said in a Friday statement. “We should remember how close he came to running the lives of not just the 84 people aboard Flight 2059, but all of their family members and friends as well.”
The plea agreement resulted in only a 50-day jail sentence with credit for time served, and five years' probation.
That agreement pertains to the state charges; however, when he is sentenced for federal charges in November, it is believed that federal officials will press for a one-year jail term, while his attorneys will again argue for probation, according to the Associated Press.
Emerson told authorities that at the time of the incident, he was grieving the death of a friend, and he had taken psychedelic mushrooms two days earlier. He said he had also gone 40 hours without sleep. He said he believed he was dreaming and believed that pulling the engine cutoff switches would wake him up,” the AP reported.
On Friday, Emerson admitted that the drugs left him unable to perceive reality but acknowledged “that doesn’t make this right.” The flight crew didn’t notice anything unusual about Emerson that would have raised alarms and caused them to ban him from the flight deck.
“This difficult journey has made me a better father, a better husband, a better member of my community,” Emerson claimed. “Today I get to be the dad I was incapable of when I had to use alcohol to deal with life as life is.”
“I lost, from all external perspectives, everything I had ever worked for,” Emerson told the judge. “But it’s the greatest gift I ever got,” The Seattle Times reported.
That statement was of little solace to passengers on the flight, one of whom, Allison Snyder, said she would never again feel comfortable flying.
“The choices that Joseph Emerson made that day and the policies that allowed them nearly led to our deaths,” Snyder said. “My husband and I are neither judge nor jury, but the consequences proposed today seem insufficient relative to Mr. Emerson’s choices and actions, regardless of his explanations or circumstances.”
“Mr. Emerson knew he was not fit to fly, a requirement for sitting in the cockpit,” Snyder said. “Joseph Emerson’s behavior that day showed he lacks the judgment to be a pilot and should never be allowed anywhere near a flight deck again.”
Another passenger, whose statement was read aloud by state prosecutors, outlined the same fears, stating that she is no longer able to relax or sleep when flying after the incident.
“When you see the impact of your life equated to eight hours of community service, it really calls you to question the respective value of your life and experiences, the unidentified passenger wrote.
Deputy District Attorney Eric Pickard called Emerson’s situation “unusual” because he has no criminal history.
“Based on everything I know right now, I think it would be very surprising if we ever saw him on the wrong side of the law again,” he said.
Emerson was charged federally with interfering with a flight crew, while Oregon charged him with 83 counts of endangering another person, and one count of endangering an aircraft. He had previously pleaded not guilty to all charges, the AP said.
Since his arrest, Emerson has spoken publicly of his struggles and has become the face of pilots’ mental health advocacy, The Times reported. He has talked about his fear in seeking treatment for his mental health issues after the death of his best friend out of fear of losing his job.
Comments