A man from Texas, Jesse Todd Thompson, apparently became enraged when a flight attendant on a Southwest Airlines flight refused to serve him alcohol. The man then spent the main part of the flight locked in the lavatory. Later on the man pleaded guilty to interfering with airline flight crew.

Jesse Todd Thompson appeared in United States District Court in Portland, Oregon this past Tuesday. The Judge went ahead and scheduled his sentencing for May 24^th.

Mr Thompson, age 34, was a passenger on the Southwest Airlines flight from Kansas City, Missouri, to Portland last September. During the flight, a flight attendant noticed he was drunk and refused to honor his drink vouchers. Complainants said that it was at this point the man became very loud and boisterous. He started yelling that no one is going to tell him what do do and he will do whatever he wants to.

Others claim that Thompson also gestured to the flight attendant in a threatening manner. This prompted her to move several male passengers to seats around him. The man next to Thompson tried to calm him down. However, when this failed he then locked himself in the lavatory of the plane as they approached Portland.

After landing police arrested Thompson for disorderly conduct and harassment when the plane landed. The man does have prior convictions for driving under the influence in Indiana and Wyoming. He also has a charge of battery in Wyoming and bail jumping in Texas. However, interfering with flight crew is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000, as well as two to three years of supervised release.