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New Yorker Accused of Slapping a Flight Attendant at Palm Beach International Airport

There's something to be said about a man slapping another man, but when the recipient of that slap is a JetBlue flight attendant -- that's going to be a legal problem.Police say 48-year-old Bryan Garnett, from Utica, New York, was on Flight 442 yesterday, taking off from Palm Beach International...
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There's something to be said about a man slapping another man, but when the recipient of that slap is a JetBlue flight attendant -- that's going to be a legal problem.

Police say 48-year-old Bryan Garnett, from Utica, New York, was on Flight 442 yesterday, taking off from Palm Beach International Airport and headed to Boston, when he slapped his male flight attendant.

The plane and its 145 passengers were still on the ground in Palm Beach when the alleged slapping occurred, but the flight carried on as scheduled.

When the plane landed in Boston, though, Garnett was arrested by Massachusetts State Police.

Police had initially thought the slapping occurred in midair, but a clerk at a Boston district court said otherwise.

It was determined that the slapping happened while the plane was still on the runway, leaving Massachusetts unable to charge Garnett.

A complaint could be filed back in Florida, in which Garnett could face possible charges of interfering with a flight crew and assault.

A Boston Globe reporter who was on the flight said he never noticed any interaction between Garnett and the flight attendant, except when Garnett was asked to put his suitcase underneath his seat before the flight.


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