2023-11-12 20:38:17
A pilot accused of trying to shut down a plane’s engines in mid-flight claims he thought he was dead and was trying to wake up.
Joseph Emerson, charged with 83 counts of murder, for the incident that occurred on October 22, consumed hallucinogenic mushrooms two days before the trip.
In mid-flight, Emerson, who was sitting in a seat in the cockpit of the Alaska Airlines flight – something common on flights – suddenly stopped and activated the fire extinguishing system, which causes the engines to shut down. . His colleagues managed to control the situation and put him under surveillance until the plane landed and the man was arrested. Nobody was hurt.
In an interview with The New York Times, Emerson, who remains detained in a jail in Portland, Oregon, said that after consuming the mushrooms, he began to think “in a lot of traumatic things and I was wondering, ‘Am I dead? Am I in hell?'” He then relived, he said, traumas from his childhood.
Already on the plane, which took off from Everett, Washington, bound for San Francisco, California, Emerson said he thought that “When both engines stopped, the plane would start heading towards an accident and I would wake up.”
In his statements to police, he said he had been depressed and believed he was suffering a mental breakdown.
After the incident, the pilot chose to divert the plane to Portland, where Emerson was detained. There he confessed to having consumed hallucinogenic mushrooms prior to the flight.
In addition to the 83 counts of attempted murder, Emerson was charged federally with interfering with a flight crew. He pleaded not guilty.
Noah Horst, Emerson’s attorney, said Emerson “I would never intentionally harm another person” and? “He was not under the influence of any toxic substance when he boarded the flight.”
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