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SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - An Atascadero man who allegedly went on a drunken rampage after missing his United Airlines flight — accosting an airline employee, brawling with police officers and hurling bomb threats — faces a maximum six months in county jail, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Joel Elliott Decou, 25, pleaded no contest Tuesday to charges of felony assault on a police officer for the Sept. 8 incident. The alleged rampage occurred in front of a United Airlines boarding gate at San Francisco International Airport, Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.
Decou, who police say was “heavily intoxicated,” says he has no recollection of the night he became unglued at the airport, Wagstaffe said.
Decou missed his first scheduled flight, was rebooked onto a later flight and showed up at the United boarding gate extremely drunk, Wagstaffe said. Then, in one sudden instant, Decou shouted a bomb threat to an airline employee and attacked another, putting the worker into a headlock, Wagstaffe said.
“No one knew why he did this, it was just out of the blue,” Wagstaffe said. “That was the part that was stunning.”
A San Francisco police officer assigned to patrol the airport arrived soon after, prompting Decou to release the airline employee. But Decou picked up a 30-gallon trash can and hurled it at the officer, Wagstaffe said. The 6-foot, 220-pound Decou then reportedly began fighting with the female officer until another officer arrived. It took both police officers and several helpful citizens to finally subdue him, Wagstaffe said.
Later that night, while in custody, Decou told police he did not remember any of what happened at the airport. He faces a maximum six-month prison term as a condition of his plea deal, Wagstaffe said. A judge says his sentence can be served in a residential alcohol-treatment program rather than a jail cell, Wagstaffe said.
“He obviously has an alcohol problem,” Wagstaffe said. “Now he is a felon in addition to that alcohol problem.”
Sentencing for Decou is set for July 30 before Judge Clifford Cretan, Wagstaffe said.
Comments from Examiner Readers
10:53 PM MST on Mon., Jul. 28, 2008 re: "It saves to fly out of San Francisco"
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1:11 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 25, 2008
re: "It saves to fly out of San Francisco"
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12:49 PM MST on Fri., Jul. 25, 2008
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10:01 AM MST on Mon., May. 26, 2008
re: "Passengers are not happy with SFO"
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8:37 AM MST on Mon., May. 26, 2008
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12:58 PM MST on Wed., Apr. 30, 2008
re: "Virgin takes off while competitors lay low"
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11:38 AM MST on Mon., Apr. 21, 2008
re: "Lawsuit talk buzzing about airport noise"
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5:26 PM MST on Thu., Apr. 10, 2008
re: "Bay Area reacts to rescheduling"
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7:03 PM MST on Fri., Dec. 21, 2007
re: "2 flights grounded at SFO"
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1:00 PM MST on Fri., Dec. 21, 2007
re: "2 American Airlines flights grounded at SFO"
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Examiner Reader said:
I agree, Southwest aircraft, besides the Boeing 737-700, are pretty beat up and ghetto. Flying Virgin is the only way to go, clean new Airbus Aircraft, freindly staff, and tons of entertainment onboard. I only wish they flew to other destnations out of San Diego.
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Wai Yip Tung said:
Of course they do fly to New York.
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Examiner Reader said:
But the low cost carriers out of SFO do not fly to places like Chicago, New York, or do they?
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Examiner Reader said:
truly poor vender selection,food services extremely limited.... one only needs to travel outside of the U.S. to make a comparison ie zurich, heathrow vender food serivice quite varied... services in sfo are sooo predictably bland off the shelf vendors and services... ray okamoto frequent flyer
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Examiner Reader said:
I read this in the printed copy. It shows Philli coming in first. No wonder the managers at SFO are taking shots at the study. Not like SFO would be a jewel by the sea... but Philli?
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Examiner Reader said:
I find Virgin America a bunch of fun to fly!
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Examiner Reader said:
Go for it! The noise over Montara and Moss Beach has become unbearable on some days. And the claim that the airport cares and calls back is BS. I have called them on really bad days and not once have they had the courtesy to return a call and discuss the issues. They deserve what is coming for them.
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Examiner Reader said:
Once again the genius of the marketplace has brought us the current state of u.s. airlines. I suspect many of us flyers would be willing to pay a bit more not to be left waiting at the gate.
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Examiner Reader said:
southwest is super ghetto with the lack of seat assignments, while it's lax it is not efficient and planes look beat up and in poor shape
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Examiner Reader said:
Southwest....is the only way to go!
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