This strikes me as unusual, just like the recent case of the Alaska Airlines pilot who was charged over a year after he blew over the limit for EtOH.
Is this a new trend in dealing with drunk flying in the U.S.? Or, an alleged case of retro Hibernian profiling?
From the article below:
Murphy allegedly asked authorities why he was being tested “so soon” after getting hired by the airline in January 2015 and demanded to know why he was only being tested for alcohol and not controlled substances.
He got hired in January 2015 and was flying as a captain by April 2015? Does JetBlue still have DEC's these days?
I've been told in the past of charges being dropped as part of a deal to successfully stay in the HIMS program.
Does the BAC of over .10% invoke another realm of federal transportation law as some have postulated? It seems that a BAC of .10% or more is presumed to be under in the influence for federal purposes, maybe you have to demonstrate some level of incapacitation at lower percentages to get a felony case.
Sadly, one in an ever continuing series...
JetBlue Pilot Busted for Flying Drunk to JFK
By Lia Eustachewich
April 27, 2016 | 12:50pm
A JetBlue pilot flew packed flights to and from JFK Airport while drunk, according to a complaint unsealed Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court.
Then when his Breathalyzer test showed he was boozed up, the pilot bizarrely tried to blame the results on his chewing gum, papers show.
Pilot Dennis Thomas Murphy Jr. was yanked off Flight 584 on April 21, 2015, after it landed at JFK from Orlando, Fla., to take a “random” alcohol test, the complaint says.
When his Breathalyzer registered a .111, the sloshed skipper blamed the results on the “gum that he was chewing,” court papers say.
Pilots can’t have a blood-alcohol content that’s higher than .04 percent and can’t consume booze eight hours before a flight, according to FAA regulations.
Murphy allegedly asked authorities why he was being tested “so soon” after getting hired by the airline in January 2015 and demanded to know why he was only being tested for alcohol and not controlled substances.
“During the walk to the onsite testing office at JFK Airport, Murphy’s face was red, and he was chewing gum rapidly,” the complaint says.
A second test administered 15 minutes later resulted in a .091 blood-alcohol concentration.
Murphy piloted two flights that day — Flight 583 with 119 passengers aboard from JFK to Orlando, and Flight 584 with 151 passengers from Orlando back to JFK, according to the complaint.
His co-pilot that day told authorities that he saw Murphy “drinking an unknown beverage from a cup” before and during the two flights.
As the “pilot flying” Flight 583, Murphy was responsible for manning the aircraft.
He was the “pilot monitoring” on Flight 584 and was the sole pilot in control when his co-pilot used the restroom, court papers say.
Murphy resigned ahead of his JetBlue investigatory meeting and was stripped of his medical certification that is required to fly.
He is expected to appear in Brooklyn federal court later Wednesday afternoon to face the charges.
JetBlue did not immediately comment.
JetBlue pilot busted for flying drunk to JFK | New York Post