Off-duty pilot who tried to cut a flight's engines midair won't serve prison time, judge rules

PORTLAND, Ore. — A former Alaska Airlines pilot who tried to cut the engines of a passenger flight in 2023 while riding off-duty in the cockpit will serve no prison time, a federal judge ruled Monday, bringing an end to a case that drew attention to the need for more mental health support for pilots.

U.S. District Court Judge Amy Baggio sentenced Joseph Emerson to credit for time served and supervised release for three years at a hearing in Portland, Oregon. Federal prosecutors had asked for one year in prison, while his attorneys had sought probation.

“Pilots are not perfect. They are human,” she said. “They are people and all people need help sometimes.”

Emerson was subdued by the flight crew after trying to cut the engines of a Horizon Air flight from Everett, Washington, to San Francisco on Oct. 22, 2023, while he was riding in an extra seat in the cockpit. The plane was diverted to Portland, where it landed safely with more than 80 people on board.

After his arrest, Emerson told police he was despondent over a friend’s recent death, had taken psychedelic mushrooms about two days earlier, and hadn’t slept in over 40 hours. He has said he believed he was dreaming at the time and that he was trying to wake himself up by grabbing two red handles that would have activated the plane’s fire suppression system and cut off fuel to its engines.

Baggio said it “offers a cautionary tale worth telling beyond the confines of this case.”

Before she announced the sentence, Emerson spoke and said he regretted the harm he caused to society.

“I’m not a victim. I am here as a direct result of my actions,” he told the court. “I can tell you that this very tragic event has forced me to grow as an individual.”

He hugged his attorneys and shared a tearful embrace with his wife after the judge announced his sentence.

Multiple people spoke on Emerson’s behalf at the hearing, including his wife, Sarah Stretch, who told the judge how the incident had impacted their family.

“I am so sorry for those that it’s impacted as much as it has. But I am extremely proud to be here with this man today, because the growth that he has had from this terrible experience has not only helped him, but benefited all that surround him,” she said through tears. “I just hope people realize that it’s not necessarily the mistake itself but how you respond to it. He has responded with courage, strength and demonstration of extreme resiliency.”

Emerson had pleaded guilty or no-contest to all charges against him in September as part of agreements with state and federal prosecutors.

Emerson, of Pleasant Hill, California, was charged in federal court with interfering with a flight crew. A state indictment in Oregon separately charged him with 83 counts of endangering another person and one count of endangering an aircraft. He was released from custody pending trial in December 2023, with requirements that he undergo mental health services, stay off drugs and alcohol, and keep away from aircraft.

A state court sentenced him to 50 days in jail, with credit for time served, plus five years of probation, 664 hours of community service — eight hours for each person he endangered — and over $60,000 in restitution, nearly all of it to Alaska Air Group.

Half of his community service can be performed at the pilot health nonprofit he founded after his arrest. He must also undergo assessments for drug and alcohol and mental health treatment, refrain from using any unprescribed drugs, and keep at least 25 feet (7.6 meters) away from operable aircraft unless he has permission from his probation officer.

In their sentencing memo asking for one year in prison, federal prosecutors wrote: “It was only through the heroic actions of the flight crew, who were able to physically restrain the defendant and restore normal operations of the aircraft, that no lives were lost that day."

In a sentencing memo, his attorneys requested probation with credit for time served over prison or home detention, arguing that the “robust” state prosecution “resulted in substantial punishment.”

In state court in September, Emerson said he was grateful to the flight crew for restraining him and saving his life, along with those of everyone else on board. He called it “the greatest gift I ever got,” even though he lost his career and wound up in jail, because it forced him to confront his mental health challenges and reliance on alcohol.

“This difficult journey has made me a better father, a better husband, a better member of my community,” he said.

The airline has said that other members of the flight crew had not observed signs of impairment that would have barred Emerson from the cockpit.

The averted disaster renewed attention on cockpit safety and the mental fitness of those allowed in them.