Gay Jetblue flight attendant released from jail to worldwide fame
Tue. August 10, 2010 11:44 PM by GoPride.com News Staff
New York City -
Gay Jetblue flight attendant Steven Slater posted bail on Tuesday night and walked into a world in which he's a celebrity -- and a workingman's hero.
On Monday, Slater lost his temper with an obnoxious passenger who pulled a bag out of an overhead bin when she wasn't supposed to and ended up hitting him on the head.
He got on the intercom and said, "To the passenger who called me a m---f--er, f--- you!"
Then he grabbed beer from the snack cart, activated the emergency exit slide, and jumped out.
The New York Daily News reported that he tore off his Jetblue tie as he walked to his car, and went home to have sex with his boyfriend, beers in hand.
"I think something about this resonated with people. The outpouring of support is very appreciated. I'm overwhelmed, very thankful," he said as he walked out of jail on Tuesday. "It's been a good time."
As Slater spoke outside the jail, people walking past shouted "We love you" and "You're a hero."
New York prosecutors said that someone on the runway could have easily been injured or killed when the exit slide inflated, which is why they have charged him with criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and trespassing charges. He has pleaded not guilty.
But prosecutors are in the minority.
Steven Slater is the object of outright adoration on more than one newly minted Facebook fan page. The main page had 80,000 fans as of Tuesday at midnight.
You can also buy T-shirts declaring your admiration for a guy who was mad as hell, and he wasn't going to take it anymore.
On Monday, Slater lost his temper with an obnoxious passenger who pulled a bag out of an overhead bin when she wasn't supposed to and ended up hitting him on the head.
He got on the intercom and said, "To the passenger who called me a m---f--er, f--- you!"
Then he grabbed beer from the snack cart, activated the emergency exit slide, and jumped out.
The New York Daily News reported that he tore off his Jetblue tie as he walked to his car, and went home to have sex with his boyfriend, beers in hand.
"I think something about this resonated with people. The outpouring of support is very appreciated. I'm overwhelmed, very thankful," he said as he walked out of jail on Tuesday. "It's been a good time."
As Slater spoke outside the jail, people walking past shouted "We love you" and "You're a hero."
New York prosecutors said that someone on the runway could have easily been injured or killed when the exit slide inflated, which is why they have charged him with criminal mischief, reckless endangerment and trespassing charges. He has pleaded not guilty.
But prosecutors are in the minority.
Steven Slater is the object of outright adoration on more than one newly minted Facebook fan page. The main page had 80,000 fans as of Tuesday at midnight.
You can also buy T-shirts declaring your admiration for a guy who was mad as hell, and he wasn't going to take it anymore.