Joe Rickey Hundley, the 60-year-old man who was charged with assault for slapping a black toddler on the plane and telling his mother to “shut that n— baby up,” has been fired by his employer, AGC Aerospace and Defense.
Al Haase, president and CEO of AGC, issued a statement on Sunday that called reports of Hundley’s behavior “offensive and disturbing,” and said he “is no longer employed with the company.” A public relations firm confirmed on Sunday night that Hundley had been fired, according to a story by The Associated Press.
Hundley of Hayden, Idaho, was president of AGC’s Unitech Composites and Structures unit. He was charged with simple assault last week in federal court in Atlanta for allegedly slapping a 19-month-old boy during a Feb. 8 flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta. The charge carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail.
According to the boy’s mother, Jessica Bennett, 33, the Delta Air Lines flight was on final descent into Atlanta, when the the child, Jonah, started to cry due to the altitude change.
Bennett said Hundley had become increasingly obnoxious during the flight and appeared to be drunk. At one point he complained that her son was too big to sit on her lap, she said.
“He reeked of alcohol,” Bennett told KARE-TV. “He was belligerent, and I was uncomfortable.”
Bennett said she was shocked by the racial slur she says Hundley used when Jonah started crying.
“And I said, ‘What did you say?’ Because I couldn’t believe that he would say that,” she told WCCO-TV. “He fell onto my face and his mouth was in my ear and he said it again, but even more hateful. And he’s on my face, so I pushed him away.”
Bennett and her husband are white, while Jonah, whom they adopted, is black. When Hundley slapped him in the face, he scratched the boy below his right eye and caused him to scream even louder, she said.
Hundley’s attorney, Marcia Shein of Decatur, Ga., told The Associated Press on Saturday that Hundley will plead not guilty.
Hundley told The Smoking Gun that he had only a single drink on the flight.
“We wish to emphasize that the behavior that has been described is contradictory to our values, embarrassing, and does not in any way reflect the patriotic character of the men and women of diverse backgrounds who work tirelessly in our business,” said the statement from Hundley’s former employer.
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I see that this guy is from Hayden, ID…as in the last stronghold of the Aryan Nation.
Think he'll use the "my words were taken out of context" defense? That is the go-to strategy for everyone nowadays.
Reason #135 why you should live in Oregon, not Idaho.
I don't get the North Idahoan Aryan douchebaggery. Just last year a white supremacist ran for sheriff in Bonner county. Moreover, many people simply don't understand how and why many find overt racism offensive. Take for example the following: "During Winter 2010, an Idaho man made a KKK snowman in his lawn, and was shocked when people complained.
He didn't know what the big deal was…" It is as if to say, "Hey! It's just the Beaners, Spics, Niggers, Chinks, or whatever…who cares?!"
Yeah, screw those guys. I LOVE the beauty Idaho has to offer. But truth be told, I was always be a bit wary and uncomfortable in the more rural areas (which are the most scenic).
I honestly thought that was Patrick Stewart with a wig for a second. yeah, I'll be over there waiting for my paddlin.
Why isn't this guy charged with criminal assault?
This is a shame I would of heated the drunk man up.
According to the article, he was charged with assault.
Norm, the Aryans were evicted a decade ago and the compound was burned. Thanks for the disparaging remark. We need more of that these days.
I'm a non-violent person BUT I this man would in a hospital in Alanta in the icu section as we speak.
This man may have a brain tumor, or some type of dementia. Don't be too quick to judge.
HE LOOKS A LOT OLDER THAN 60!
That man would have never gotten close to hitting my son.
Therefore, you are saying that people with "dementia" are allowed to say whatever they want to? I feel that if they said, somewhere in their "demented & sick" mind, they really do mean it.
That's not what I said. The man is probably crazy. He should be in a mental hospital.
Quick to judge OH NO, I would have been quick to flatten his face if it was my baby