A California woman who knocked out a flight attendant’s teeth because she didn’t want to put her mask on properly was sentenced Friday to 15 months in prison.
Vyvianna Quinonez pleaded guilty in December to one count of interference with crew members and attendants on her Southwest flight.
Quinonez was on a flight from Sacramento to San Diego on May 23, 2021, when she refused to obey a series of plane rules during descent, including wearing her seatbelt, putting her tray table away and securing her mask across her mouth and nose, according to the Department of Justice.
Two flight attendants asked her to do so, at which point Quinonez began filming on her cell phone while she shouted profanities at one of the employees, then pushed her and began attacking her.
Several other passengers jumped in and tried to hold Quinonez back, while someone several rows ahead filmed the encounter.
The flight attendant was left with three chipped teeth, two badly enough that they had to be replaced by crowns, a swollen left eye, a cut that required three stitches and a bruise in the shape of fingers on her right forearm.
“Violence on aircraft endangers the lives of all onboard,” U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman said in a statement. “Attacks on flight crew members, who perform vital jobs to ensure passenger safety, will not be tolerated. We will pursue criminal charges against those who violate the law both at the airport and aboard aircraft while in flight.”
Quinonez has also been ordered to pay $25,981.57 in restitution and a $7,500 fine. She will be banned from flying for three years until she attends anger management classes.
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