Actor Selma Blair had no intention of causing harm during a commercial flight and subsequent events where she allegedly assaulted two flight attendants, a police officer, and a medical nurse, according to a detailed statement released Friday by her representatives.
The extensive statement aimed to counter what representatives described as unfair and inaccurate depictions of the 54-year-old actor following the Sunday Delta Air Lines flight from Los Angeles to New York, which resulted in her initial arrest. According to the long statement sought to push back against what it, Were inaccurate and unsympathetic portrayals of Blair, 54, and the Delta flight from Los Angeles to New York on Sunday that led to her first arrest.
“Selma Blair experienced a medical emergency on the flight,” the statement read, adding that there was no attempt to open the aircraft door and no intent to injure anyone.
While earlier remarks from her legal counsel in court and a brief prior statement attributed the incident to a medical emergency, the latest release provided a much broader defense.
Addressing her multiple sclerosis diagnosis, which has been public knowledge since 2018, the statement called it outrageous to question her condition, noting that her physical achievements in the years since her diagnosis have been remarkable despite daily pain and ongoing bad days.
The representatives also noted that Blair lives with pseudobulbar affect, a secondary neurological condition linked to multiple sclerosis that significantly influences how a medical episode appears to individuals unfamiliar with her health. Shohei Ohtani’s health and a possible lockout loom over an uncertain offseason for the Dodgers.
Due to this condition, she travels constantly with a service dog that remains by her side, though authorities took the animal away from her during the incident, the statement added.
The release highlighted Blair’s ongoing advocacy work for disability rights and the broader multiple sclerosis community.
According to Port Authority of New York and New Jersey officials, Blair allegedly injured two flight attendants on the New York-bound plane, then kicked a responding police officer on the way to the hospital and kicked a nurse upon arrival.
She entered a not guilty plea on Monday to two state-level assault charges regarding the officer and the nurse, prompting a judge to issue a protective order. Currently free on bail, she is scheduled to return to court in January. ALCS Game 4 postponed by rain; Rays and Guardians to resume series Saturday. Trump administration threatens to prosecute local California election workers.
Federal law enforcement officials speaking anonymously indicated that the FBI also issued a notice charging Blair with assault over her behavior aboard the aircraft.
Authorities have disclosed limited information regarding the onboard events, though air traffic recordings show the Delta pilot requested medical staff at the gate to address a bloody nose and bite marks while ruling out the need for ambulances.
Born in Michigan, Blair launched her acting career in New York during her early twenties, starring in notable films such as Cruel Intentions in 1999, Legally Blonde in 2001, and Hellboy in 2004.
The actor previously issued an apology in 2016 for regretful statements made during a flight connecting Cancun and Los Angeles, explaining at the time that mixing medication with alcohol caused her to black out.
Friday’s statement criticized public coverage of the recent event, claiming the narrative was constructed almost entirely from police accounts and a decade-old headline.
“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 representatives said. “But fair reporting has been the exception, and in the space left by our silence, speculation has hardened into something being treated as fact.”
