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Judge orders pilot's competency tested

Posted: April 4, 2012 - 4:22pm
FBI agents escort JetBlue Capt. Clayton F. Osbon into the federal courthouse in Amarillo.  Amarillo Globe-News
Amarillo Globe-News

Amarillo’s federal judge ordered suspended JetBlue Capt. Clayton F. Osbon to undergo a mental competency test to determine if he can stand trial.

U.S. District Judge Mary Lou Robinson’s Wednesday order said federal marshals will transport Osbon, 49, of Richmond Hill, Ga., to
an undisclosed federal medical center. Prosecutors and E. Dean Roper, Osbon’s attorney, agreed to the exam Wednesday after a government motion said events described in a FBI affidavit “establish a likelihood that Osbon may be suffering from a mental disease or defect.”

Osbon’s test will determine whether he understands the charge against him and can assist his attorney in a defense, according to Robinson’s order.

Roper has declined to comment.

JetBlue Flight 191 made an emergency landing March 27 in Amarillo after Osbon raced screaming about the cabin, pounded on the cockpit door and shouted incoherently about Sept. 11, 2001, and al-Qaida, an FBI affidavit said. Co-pilot Jason Dowd, 41, of Salem, Ohio, became concerned about Osbon’s behavior, locked the captain out of the cockpit and guided the jetliner to Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport, the document said.

The aircraft was bound to Las Vegas from New York. None of the flight’s 141 passengers and crew members, who restrained Osbon at Dowd’s request, was seriously hurt.

Building a plausible case around a defendant’s mental instability during the alleged offense is crucial in these cases, said Ronald Goldman, a pilot and lead aviation disaster attorney at Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman in Los Angeles.

“It’s not just that he willed it, but that he had some cognition that allowed him to appreciate what he was doing,” Goldman said. “Did he have any reasoning power when he did it?”

Goldman said a temporary insanity defense has a “checkered history” because it is difficult to sell in court. But prosecutors still face a heavy burden to prove Osbon was capable of understanding his actions.

“That is specific to that time and those actions,” Goldman said. “He could be perfectly controlled now, but at the moment, the defendant could say he didn’t know right from wrong.”

Federal Aviation Administration records show Osbon, a 12-year JetBlue pilot, underwent a medical screening in December and was licensed as an airline transport pilot and a flight and ground instructor. His only medical restriction was a requirement that he wear corrective lenses.

The FAA requires pilots older than 40, like Osbon, to undergo checkups every six months, but those tests are principally physical. Doctors rarely inquire about pilots’ mental health, and even if those questions are asked, pilots might be reticent, fearing they could lose their license to fly, pilots and aviation experts have said.

While federal regulations include some safeguards during medical evaluations, the potential blemish on a professional record can likely affect specific mental health reporting, Goldman said.

Pilots are “supposed to notify the FAA when they seek treatment and list every medication (they’re) on,” Goldman said. “But who’s checking to make sure that’s correct? We still have stigmas to it, so people don’t want to disclose they’re under some care for a mental health issue. We have our FAA examination, but should we have a component that does some psychological testing to try to screen out mental instability?”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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chaosgirl 04/04/12 - 04:32 pm


Exactly what should happen.

Ashlybee120 04/05/12 - 09:32 am

MRI /ct scan

I still think the poor guy had a brain something or another. I know the Drs probably did an MRI, but maybe not. The media seems to be attacking this man as a crazy loon and maybe they didnt. Dont be so quick to jump to conclusions.

chaosgirl 04/05/12 - 04:25 pm


I feel in my heart that he felt everyone was in danger, as he was never physically violent towards any of the passengers. I think he had a psychotic moment, for what ever reason (maybe something medical) but he must have felt real danger. When one is delusional, you cannot convince them their thoughts are incorrect, and they have no way of knowing they are incorrect. I feel really bad for this guy, it seems he felt like they were being threatened by terrorists and he had no control over it. His anxiety level must have been overwhelming.

logicrules 04/07/12 - 10:30 pm

Drug or Alcohol tests

In the excitement did anyone think to take drug or alcohol tests? Its likely that something brought on his actions; and with the spate of pilots drinking before flights why was no mention made of any immediate tests that all others would be subject to?
This guy is piloting for 12 years and suddenly snaps with no apparent cause, yeah right!

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