Three days after Selma Blair appeared in court charged with two counts of aggravated assault, the actress has broken her silence publicly in a statement that denies several of the shocking accusations.
"Since Sunday night, the public account of what happened to Selma aboard a flight to New York has been built almost entirely on a police statement and a decade-old headline," read the statement shared by her publicist.
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"We can, however, correct the record on a few points already in public circulation. Selma Blair experienced a medical emergency on the flight. There was no attempt to open the door of the aircraft. Selma did not intend to harm anyone," it continued, before criticizing online claims that Selma was faking her multiple sclerosis diagnosis which she received in 2018
The 54-year-old actress was arrested at New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport following an alleged altercation with crew members on a Delta Airlines flight on October 11, 2026. She was later taken to hospital.
She appeared in court on October 12, 2026, pleading not guilty to two counts of second-degree assault and was released on bail.
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"What Selma has been able to do physically in the years since is nothing short of a miracle," the statement read. "She still has bad days, and she lives with pain daily. Selma also has pseudobulbar affect, a neurological condition secondary to her MS, which bears directly on how a medical episode presents to people who do not know her. For the same reason, she travels with a service dog who doesn’t leave her side, and the authorities took her dog from her," the statement read.
It also highlighted the work Selma has been focusing on in recent years including "seven film and television projects in 2026 alone, only a couple of which have been announced."
"She has launched a skin care line, a clothing line, and a line of eye-glass readers, each built around the idea of beauty and utility for people whose bodies do not always cooperate. She remains a visible and relentless advocate for disability rights, for the MS community, and this year for the Jewish community in the face of rising antisemitism, including from the stage of the ADL’s State of the Arts event at The Jewish Museum two weeks ago. Selma had never been arrested before Sunday night."
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The statement also criticized "speculation [that] has hardened into something being treated as fact."
"There is much more to this story than has been reported, and we ask to consider the entirety of the facts before rushing to judgment, whether in the courtroom or in the court of public opinion," it concluded.
During the court appearance, Selma's lawyer, Shawn Barnes, spoke on her behalf, claiming that she had been in the midst of a medical emergency when the incidents occurred. He alleged that she had spent an entire day on set, fell and hit her head while on the flight, and didn't have the necessary medication, which caused her to act out.
He argued that given this was her first "brush with the criminal justice system," this was born out of a medical malady rather than malicious intent.
The Legally Blonde star's bail was set at $20,000 cash, $60,000 bond, or a $60,000 partially secured bond. The actress was released on bail later that evening.
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The incident occurred on a Delta Airlines flight from Los Angeles to New York City. Selma is accused of attempting to open the plane's door while in the air, biting one flight attendant and leaving another with lacerations after an attack
Selma is also accused of repeatedly kicking a Port Authority police officer in the neck, face and chest after she was removed from the flight, as well as punching a nurse at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where she'd been transported.
Court records state that both the police officer and the nurse suffered bruising and swelling.
"Selma experienced a medical emergency that led to the alleged conduct," read a statement from her team, given to HELLO! at the time. "Upon landing, she received immediate medical attention and is currently in stable condition.
In 2018, Selma shared her multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, and alleged in her 2022 memoir that undiagnosed MS symptoms as a child had possibly contributed to brain damage.
The actress also revealed she had developed an alcohol addiction soon after her diagnosis.