Published Wednesday
March 19, 2003
Pilot won''t face counts in Omaha
BY HENRY J. CORDES
...City Prosecutor Marty Conboy said he reviewed reports of the March 5 incident and declined to file charges against the pilot, Kent A. Raney, 36, of suburban St. Louis.
He said that although comments made by the pilot were inappropriate, they didn''t rise to the level of a threat that would justify a prosecution for disorderly conduct.
Raney and his flight crew became upset over the screening process and made comments to the federal Transportation Security Administration screeners. His co-pilot said he thought it was "ridiculous" for pilots to be screened.
Raney then asked an Eppley police officer manning the checkpoint to accompany him to the cockpit so he could show the officer something.
When the officer declined, Raney told the officer he had an ax in the cockpit and could chop off the officer''s head if he wanted to.
That was the comment that led to the pilot being detained and ticketed for disorderly conduct.
Conboy said he didn''t view the ax comment as a threat. It appeared to him the pilot was questioning why the crew is screened for weapons before entering the plane when they have access to a fire ax in the cockpit.
"It does appear he was in a very inappropriate way trying to make a point about his frustration with screening and was not intending to cut someone''s head off," Conboy said.
"It doesn''t make it right, but it doesn''t rise to the level of a crime."
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