Flight attendant in passenger tiff to be evaluated

NEW YORK (AP) — A former JetBlue flight attendant accused of cursing out a passenger and sliding down an emergency exit chute will be mentally evaluated for a possible plea deal.

Steven Slater appeared Tuesday in a New York City courtroom for a brief hearing on criminal mischief charges.

Attorneys on both sides said a deal was being discussed. Slater will be evaluated and might qualify for an alternative sentencing program, which means he could face community service instead of jail.

Slater also was charged with reckless endangerment and trespassing after last month’s meltdown aboard a JetBlue flight from Pittsburgh that had just landed at Kennedy International Airport.

Defense attorney Daniel J. Horwitz has said the passenger’s “lack of civility” prompted his behavior.

Slater left JetBlue last week.