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Passenger on airline gets relief
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tue June 2, 2009
Area: Atlanta
A Delta passenger charged with assault over a bathroom emergency got relief in court this week in an agreement reached with federal prosecutors.
Joao Correa's case pit the call of nature against the law of man. The emergency led the 43-year-old health care marketing manager to spend two nights in jail and face the prospect of being indicted for a federal crime.
But under an agreement, Correa will face no charges for the March 28 incident if he completes a three-month pretrial diversion program. He also had to acknowledge he did not handle the situation as well as he should have.
"I hate he's had to suffer this level of indignity," said his lawyer, Natasha Silas, who praised federal prosecutors in Atlanta. "This is the right resolution. I'm glad Mr. Correa will be able to resume some level of normalcy in his life."
U.S. Attorney David Nahmias said that after reviewing the evidence and circumstances, "we reached a resolution that we believed was fair and just."
Correa's saga began on a flight from Honduras to Atlanta as he returned from a business trip. He was to get a connecting flight at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on his way back home to Ohio.
About 30 minutes into his flight, Correa said a meal he had eaten did not agree with him and he had to use the bathroom right away. When a beverage cart blocked his way to the economy-class lavatory, he rushed to business class.
But flight attendant Stephanie Scott directed Correa back to his seat and told him to wait for the cart to move. Minutes later, Correa said, the cart was still there and he was desperate. He raced back to the business-class bathroom but was again blocked by Scott who placed her arm on his shoulder.
Scott later told an FBI agent that Correa grabbed her arm and twisted it. Correa told the agent he grabbed the attendant's arm to steady his balance.
When Correa refused to return to his seat, Scott called the pilot over the plane's intercom. The pilot then talked to Correa and let him use the business-class bathroom.
The FBI charged Correa with felony assault before he could catch his connecting flight home.
He was jailed for two nights before a U.S. magistrate in Atlanta granted him bond.
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