A man slapped a crying baby and allegedly used a racial slur while on-board a Delta Airlines flight from Minneapolis to Atlanta Feb. 8, KBOI2.com reports Friday. Joe Rickey Hundley, 60, has been charged with simple assault after the incident.
According to the baby's mother, Jessica Bennett, her son began crying as the plane prepared for landing. Hundley was seated next to her and after he slapped the baby, it left a red scratch under his eye. Bennett claimed that the man "told her to shut that ('N word') baby up."
Bennett reportedly received assistance from other passengers when they heard what was happening. Todd Wooten was a passenger on the plane seated several rows in front of the mother and her baby. When he heard vulgar language coming from behind him, he went to see what the commotion was about.
Hundley wasn't taken into police custody and it's unknown if the case will make it to court. Hundley's attorney said they will wait and see how this incident "develops."
It's not unusual for babies to cry when a plane lifts off or prepares for landing because their ears are especially sensitive to changes in air pressure.
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