Feds: Accused pilot was on mushrooms
An off-duty Alaska Airlines pilot accused of trying to shut off the engines of a San Franciscobound plane on Sunday suggested that he was on psychedelic mushrooms at the time of the incident, and allegedly stated that he “tried to kill everybody,” according to federal court documents.
Joseph David Emerson of Pleasant Hill is facing 83 state charges of attempted murder after the alleged attempt to bring the plane down, and court documents made public on Tuesday reveal federal officials will seek additional charges of interference with flight crew members and attendants.
The federal complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, sheds additional light on the chaotic moments surrounding the incident, and is the first to publicly allege that Emerson may have been on mind-altering substances at the time of the flight.
Federal officials added that Emerson reported becoming depressed around six months ago, and said it was his first time taking psychedelic mushrooms.
Just after 6 p.m. on Sunday, Portland, Ore., police responded to a report of a disturbance on an inbound aircraft after a man sitting in the cockpit jump seat attempted to shut the engines down mid-flight.
Pilots later told police that Emerson had seemed fine at the beginning of the flight, engaging pilots in conversation about the weather and the aircraft, according to the federal complaint.
At some point between Astoria and Portland, Emerson threw his headset across the cockpit and announced “I’m not okay,” pilots told police. Emerson allegedly then reached up to grab red fire handles and pulled them down — an act that would activate the aircraft’s fire suppression system and shut off fuel supply to the engines, one of the pilots told police.
According to federal officials, Emerson said, “Yah … I pulled both emergency shut off handles because I thought I was dreaming and I just wanna wake up.”
One of the two on-duty pilots grabbed Emerson’s wrists while the other declared an on-flight emergency. The pilot and Emerson “wrestled” with one another for several seconds before Emerson suddenly settled down, and then calmly complied when the pilots asked him to leave the cockpit, the pilots told law enforcement officials.
According to police interviews with several flight attendants, Emerson then walked to the back of the aircraft and told a flight attendant he was just kicked out of the flight deck.
“You need to cuff me right now or it’s going to be bad,” Emerson reportedly said.
The flight attendants then sat Emerson in one of the flight attendant seats and put handcuffs on his wrists. But during the flight’s descent, Emerson turned toward an emergency exit and attempted to pull the handle, which a flight attendant stopped by putting her hands on his hands, the complaint states.
Another flight attendant heard Emerson say he “messed everything up” and that he “tried to kill everybody.”
Emerson was taken into custody after the flight landed in Portland.
During an interview with police, Emerson allegedly told officers that he believed he was going through a nervous breakdown and that he hadn’t slept in more than 40 hours. Emerson said while riding in the cockpit, he got the feeling the pilots “weren’t paying attention to what was going on … it didn’t seem right.”
Emerson then began discussing the use of psychedelic mushrooms, officials said.
Police said Emerson waived his right to an attorney. “I’m admitting to what I did,” he said, according to the affidavit. “I’m not fighting any charges you want to bring against me, guys.”
Emerson is expected to be arraigned on the attempted murder charges in Oregon on Tuesday afternoon.
Ross Aimer, a former United pilot who is now CEO of Aero Consulting Experts, said only on-duty pilots get drug tested, so an off-duty pilot riding in the jump seat would not be screened.
The drug tests are random and can happen before or after a pilot’s workday. Pilots on extended leave also are not drug tested, Aimer said.