Man attacks woman for “spreading disease” on flight to Jacksonville

There’s plenty of anger to go around in the friendly skies these days – from actor Alec Baldwin to right here at Jacksonville International Airport. A 31-year-old Georgia man was arrested at JIA last month after confronting a woman he said was “spreading disease” on the plane, according to Action News Jacksonville. When passengers were getting off the plane, the man started yelling obscenities at a 19-year-old woman and berating her about coughing and infecting the entire plane. He then charged her and rammed his shoulder into her, forcing her against a wall, the television station reported. The woman had bruising on her back and was treated at the airport. The man was arrested for the criminal charge of battery in Jacksonville.

Battery is a first degree misdemeanor and in punishable by up to a year in the county jail. To prove the crime of Battery in Florida, the state attorney must prove that the man intentionally touched the woman against her will or harmed the girl. Unless the man has a significant criminal record, cases like these will often work out for probation with a requirement to take anger management classes – something other than a jail sentence. But if it does end up in trial, it could be a fascinating look at what jurors think should be the standard of behavior on an airplane. This case wasn’t like when Baldwin had to be pulled off a plane when he refused to stop playing a game on an iPad, but anyone who’s flown recently has likely seen the short tempers and increased grumpiness among passengers. Would jurors chalk it up to a bad day for the man, or stick it to him for losing his cool?

In a case like this, jury selection is paramount. Our Jacksonville Criminal Defense Trial Attorney has picked dozens of juries in Northeast Florida and knows what questions to ask to take people’s temperature on current events and their attitudes toward particular crimes. No criminal jury will have the exact makeup a defendant is looking for, but an experienced criminal defense firm like The Mussallem Law Firm can work to line up the best possible panel for your case.

If you need a criminal defense attorney in Jacksonville or the surrounding area, call The Mussallem Law Firm, PA at (904) 365-5200 for a free consultation. Our Duval County Criminal Lawyer is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.