Selma Blair Breaks Her Silence on Plane Arrest in Lengthy Statement from Rep: ‘Selma Did Not Intend to Harm Anyone’ (Exclusive)

A representative for Selma Blair has shared a statement with PEOPLE regarding Blair's Oct. 11 arrest

The actress pleaded not guilty to two counts of second-degree assault following her arrest after an alleged altercation on a Delta Airlines flight

Blair "experienced a medical emergency on the flight" and "did not intend to harm anyone," her rep said in the statement

Selma Blair 's spokesperson has released a statement about the actress' recent arrest .

"Since Sunday night, the public account of what happened to Selma aboard a flight to New York has been built almost entirely on a police statement and a decade-old headline," said Blair's spokesperson in a statement shared exclusively with PEOPLE.

Blair, 54, was arrested at New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport before being taken to a hospital following an alleged altercation with crew members on a Delta Airlines flight on Oct. 11. After appearing in court the next day and pleading not guilty to two counts of second-degree assault , the actress was released on bail.

"A handful of journalists have taken the time to report on Selma as a human being rather than a headline, and we are grateful to them," the statement continues. "But fair reporting has been the exception, and in the space left by our silence, speculation has hardened into something being treated as fact. We can, however, correct the record on a few points already in public circulation. Selma Blair experienced a medical emergency on the flight. There was no attempt to open the door of the aircraft. Selma did not intend to harm anyone."

Blair publicly revealed her diagnosis of the chronic autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis in 2018.

In the statement shared with PEOPLE, the spokesperson adds that "the suggestion by anyone that Selma does not have multiple sclerosis is outrageous. Her diagnosis has been public since 2018. What Selma has been able to do physically in the years since is nothing short of a miracle. She still has bad days, and she lives with pain daily. Selma also has pseudobulbar affect, a neurological condition secondary to her MS, which bears directly on how a medical episode presents to people who do not know her. For the same reason, she travels with a service dog who doesn't leave her side, and the authorities took her dog from her."

Blair, the statement continues, "has worked on seven film and television projects in 2026 alone, only a couple of which have been announced. She has launched a skin care line, a clothing line, and a line of eye-glass readers, each built around the idea of beauty and utility for people whose bodies do not always cooperate. She remains a visible and relentless advocate for disability rights, for the MS community, and this year for the Jewish community in the face of rising antisemitism, including from the stage of the ADL's State of the Arts event at The Jewish Museum two weeks ago. Selma had never been arrested before Sunday night."

It concludes, "There is much more to this story than has been reported, and we ask to consider the entirety of the facts before rushing to judgment, whether in the courtroom or in the court of public opinion."

Blair was accused of kicking a police officer repeatedly and a nurse in the chest aboard the Oct. 11 flight, according to a criminal court affidavit. Dispatch audio obtained by PEOPLE on Oct. 12 indicated that an emergency responder identified someone involved in the plane incident as injured with "some bite marks" on top of other minor injuries.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

A spokesperson for the FBI confirmed on Oct. 12 that the agency is investigating the incident. Delta Airlines "has zero tolerance for unruly or unlawful behavior, as the safety of our customers and crew always comes first," a spokesperson for the airline told PEOPLE.

Blair has faced several headline-making controversies through the years. In 2016, the Cruel Intentions star publicly apologized after causing a disturbance and being removed from a flight in Los Angeles following a trip to Cancun, Mexico.

In her 2022 memoir Mean Baby: A Memoir of Growing Up , Blair included a chapter titled "Bite Me," in which she wrote that in social settings she has bitten Sienna Miller , Seth MacFarlane and Kate Moss at separate times throughout the years.

Blair has also previously made headlines for making Islamophobic comments after leaving a since-deleted comment under an Instagram post that read, "Deport all these terrorist supporting goons. Islam has destroyed Muslim countries and then they come here and destroy minds. They know they are liars. Twisted justifications. May they meet their fate."

Blair later made an Instagram statement apologizing "with love and respect" for "inadvertently" making the comment after she "commented on a post by Abraham Hamra regarding two congress members who are against banning October 7th Hamas terrorists from entering the USA."

Following her Oct. 11 arrest, Blair is still expected to appear as scheduled at the upcoming 90s Con in Hartford, Conn., running Oct. 16–18.