Australian Model Who Slapped Flight Attendant Sentenced to Community Service and Probation

Australian model Adau Mornyang was sentenced on Monday in Los Angeles for slapping a flight attendant and going on an obscene rant during a January flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles.

U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney, sentenced Mornyang to 100 hours of community service and three years probation in lieu of fines and prison time, saying he believed she was deeply sorry for her actions.

Mornyang, who had been drinking wine excessively on the Jan. 21 flight, began “yelling obscenities and racial slurs and flailing her arms,” according to the prosecutors’ sentencing memorandum and reporting by The Associated Press. When flight attendants tried to calm her, she slapped one of them and several air marshals had to come out from undercover to assist.

According to 25-year-old Mornyang, who migrated to Australia as a refugee from South Sudan at age 10, she is getting treatment for anxiety and depression rather than self-medicating like she did on that flight.

“I’ve learned to deal with my emotions and trauma in a proper way,” said Mornyang in the court, going on to say, “I’ll do what it takes to prove to the world that I am not that woman.” She asked the court for “forgiveness, kindness and mercy.”

Carny said before sentencing Mornyang, “I do believe she’s remorseful and that she’s committed to getting treatment to make sure this never happens again.” However, prosecutors noted that Mornyang’s statement said little about the flight’s crew and passengers whose flight she impacted.

In addition to community service, Mornyang must submit to drug tests and receive mental health counseling throughout her three-year probation.