Selma Blair exits Queens Criminal Court
The actress was arrested Sunday after allegedly attacking crew members on board a Delta flight into New York City. (Credit: Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News)
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Selma Blair is speaking out for the first time since her arrest.
On Friday, Blair’s representative issued a lengthy statement to People, saying the actress “did not intend to harm anyone.”
“Since Sunday night, the public account of what happened to Selma aboard a flight to New York has been built almost entirely on a police statement and a decade-old headline,” the spokesperson said.
Selma Blair’s rep shared a statement following her arrest after an altercation on a Delta Air Lines flight. (Sean Zanni)
“A handful of journalists have taken the time to report on Selma as a human being rather than a headline, and we are grateful to them,” the statement continued. “But fair reporting has been the exception, and in the space left by our silence, speculation has hardened into something being treated as fact. We can, however, correct the record on a few points already in public circulation. Selma Blair experienced a medical emergency on the flight. There was no attempt to open the door of the aircraft. Selma did not intend to harm anyone.”
SELMA BLAIR ARRESTED AFTER IN-FLIGHT INCIDENT
In 2018, Blair revealed publicly that she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease.
“Selma Blair experienced a medical emergency on the flight. There was no attempt to open the door of the aircraft. Selma did not intend to harm anyone.”
“The suggestion by anyone that Selma does not have multiple sclerosis is outrageous. Her diagnosis has been public since 2018. What Selma has been able to do physically in the years since is nothing short of a miracle. She still has bad days, and she lives with pain daily,” the statement continued. “Selma also has pseudobulbar affect, a neurological condition secondary to her MS, which bears directly on how a medical episode presents to people who do not know her. For the same reason, she travels with a service dog who doesn’t leave her side, and the authorities took her dog from her.”
Blair’s rep went on to share the list of projects the star has been involved in this year.
Selma Blair exits Queens Criminal Court, Monday, October 12, 2026. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News)
SELMA BLAIR’S LAWYER CITES MISSED MEDICATION, HEAD INJURY AFTER IN-FLIGHT ARREST: WHAT DOCTORS SAY
“[Blair] has worked on seven film and television projects in 2026 alone, only a couple of which have been announced. She has launched a skin care line, a clothing line, and a line of eye-glass readers, each built around the idea of beauty and utility for people whose bodies do not always cooperate. She remains a visible and relentless advocate for disability rights, for the MS community, and this year for the Jewish community in the face of rising antisemitism, including from the stage of the ADL’s State of the Arts event at The Jewish Museum two weeks ago. Selma had never been arrested before Sunday night,” the statement said.
It concluded, “There is much more to this story than has been reported, and we ask to consider the entirety of the facts before rushing to judgment, whether in the courtroom or in the court of public opinion.”
Selma Blair appeared in Queens Criminal Court on Monday, October, 12, 2026 in Queens, New York. (Barry Williams/ New York Daily News via Pool)
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Blair was arraigned Monday on two counts of second-degree assault stemming from accusations that she assaulted a nurse and a police officer after an incident involving crew members aboard a Delta Air Lines flight to New York City. Blair pleaded not guilty.
The judge set bail at $20,000 cash/$60,000 bond/ $60,000 partially secured bond. She’s expected in court in January 2027.
The actress was arrested Sunday.
Selma Blair allegedly got in a physical altercation with Delta Air Lines crew while on board the flight. (Variety via Getty Images)
“On Sunday October 11 at approximately 11pm at JFK Airport, PAPD responded to a call about a physically abusive passenger aboard Delta Airlines flight 938 which was parked at the gate after arrival from LAX,” New York Port Authority officials confirmed to Fox News Digital.
“Suspect was identified as Selma Blair, a 54-year-old woman. She was taken into custody and transported to the hospital for evaluation.”
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During her court appearance in Queens, Blair’s lawyer claimed the actress missed multiple doses of a “powerful” medication, the New York Post reported.
WATCH: Selma Blair exits Queens Criminal Court
“This was not an intentional assault,” the outlet noted that her attorney, Shawn Barnes, said in court. “Ms. Blair missed several doses of… a powerful medication that controls severe neurological symptoms.”
“Ms. Blair boarded this flight after being on set and working extensive hours and exhaustive hours in the days leading up to this flight,” he added. “Additionally, at one point, during the flight, there was an incident where Miss Blair actually fell and hit her head,” Barnes added, according to the NY Post. “These factors, coupled with altitude, resulted in a state of severe confusion and disorientation.”
Blair was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2018. (Getty Images for ADL)
Federal charges will be handled separately.
Blair was restrained on a stretcher at the airport but freed her leg, and allegedly kicked an officer in the face, neck and chest, causing substantial swelling, court documents said.
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A nurse at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where Blair was taken, alleged that the actress kicked her in the chest while moving her.
Delta confirmed that law enforcement officials responded to an incident upon arrival to John F. Kennedy International Airport, a flight which departed out of Los Angeles earlier in the day.
Selma Blair is expected to appear back in court January 2027. (Marc Piasecki/WireImage/Getty Images)
“Delta has zero tolerance for unruly or unlawful behavior, as the safety of our customers and crew always comes first,” Delta said in a statement.
Additionally, there was no operational impact on the flight as it landed ahead of schedule at JFK, Delta said.
Sources told TMZ that Blair allegedly punched one flight attendant and bit another in the middle of the flight.
Fox News Digital’s Tracy Wright contributed to this report.
