D.C. businessman accused of disrupting flight faces 20 years
By: Scott McCabe
Examiner Staff Writer
October 15, 2009
A Washington public relations executive flying home from Houston was charged with a felony under the USA Patriot Act for drunkenly disregarding the orders of flight attendants, court filings said.
David H. Bass, 44, was charged in federal court under a provision that defines interfering with a flight member as a terrorist act and a felony. Bass was charged with intimidating a flight crew member and attendant. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.
Bass, who sometimes appears on television as a political commentator, recently began Raptors Strategies public relations firm, which boasts the motto: "New times demand new strategies." He did not return phone call seeking comment for this story; neither did his attorney.
Bass' problems began Friday evening while traveling first class from Houston to Washington. Bass appeared drunk and began disrupting and annoying those around him to the point that at least one of his fellow passengers was moved to a different part of the plane, according to an affidavit signed by an FBI agent.
Bass crawled over one woman to stand in the aisle when flight attendants said it was not safe to stand and refused the flight attendants' orders to take his seat, documents said. He became argumentative when the flight attendants refused to serve him wine, according to a flight attendant's written statement.
When the plane landed at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Bass was greeted onboard by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority police. Officers said he continued to appear drunk, assumed an "aggressive posture" and responded to questioning in a belligerent manner, according to the FBI agent's affidavit.
Bass was not taken into custody, according to court filings, but was charged Saturday with the provision created after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks that makes it a felony to interfere with a flight attendant. His next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 27.
According to a report earlier this year by the Los Angeles Times, more than 200 people have been convicted under the amended law.
smccabe@washingtonexaminer.com
