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She was just doing her job.Delta Air Lines Flight 800 was en route from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles when flight attendant P.L.L. began beverage service. She passed a passenger, believing he was asleep.What happened next diverted the entire plane.Cody James Maluck, 32, allegedly slapped her on the buttocks with enough force to push her forward. When she turned around, he put his hands up and said, "I didn't do anything." A second crew member witnessed the incident and confirmed her account.The flight was diverted to Atlanta. Maluck was arrested at the gate and turned over to the FBI.A federal grand jury later indicted him on a charge of interference with flight crew members or attendants. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison.Delta said it will always cooperate with law enforcement to protect its employees.The flight attendant has made no public statement.✍️ Something I didn't see mentioned much in the coverage... this guy didn't just get arrested like normal. Because it happened on a plane, it automatically became a federal case. That's why Atlanta police were waiting for him at the gate and later turned him over to the FBI.A lot of people don't realize this, but flight attendants aren't treated like regular service workers. Legally, they're considered part of the safety crew. So the second your actions interfere with one of them while they're doing their job, you're in federal territory.Apparently, he told investigators he had headphones on, didn't hear the drink offer, missed the cart, and was trying to get her attention. Basically saying he didn't mean anything by it.But that's kind of the catch here. The charge isn't really about what he meant to do. It's about the fact that a crew member was allegedly interfered with while performing her duties. Under federal law, that can be enough to trigger serious criminal charges.He also had some minor issues on his record already, and the judge decided to keep him locked up while he waits for trial.And the flight attendant? She was just going up and down the aisle doing her job, serving drinks to people she doesn't even know. She hasn't said anything publicly.Honestly, she doesn't need to. The indictment speaks for itself.Source: People, TravelPulse, U.S. District Court (Northern District of Georgia), Image for illustrative purposes only.