Joe Rickey Hundley's Job as Military Supplier Terminated: Man Slapped Baby (VIDEO)
Joe Rickey Hundley, an executive for AGC Aerospace & Defense, has been fired following an incident in which he is accused of slapping a 19-month old baby on a plane in February.
AGC Aerospace & Defense, a company responsible for supplies technology and other services to the military and businesses, said in a Sunday statement that Hundley is no longer an employee of the company. Over the weekend, the story of Hundley slapping a 19-month-old baby during a Delta airline flight on Feb. 8, received mass media attention.
AGC initially placed Hundley, who has been charged with assaulting a minor, on suspension. But over the weekend the company stated that Hundley's suspension had become a termination.
"Reports of the recent behavior of one of our business unit executives while on personal travel are offensive and disturbing,"said a statement from AGC Aerospace & Defense. "We have taken this matter very seriously and worked diligently to examine it since learning of the matter on Friday afternoon.
"As of Sunday, the executive is no longer employed with the company," the company added.
The mother of the 19-month-old baby, Jessica Bennett, 33, said Hundley was irritable with her adopted son for most of the flight, causing her to stand near the back of the plane. The incident occurred after Bennett was required to return to her seat for landing.
"I was having trouble comforting him," Bennett told CNN, due to the changing altitudes, "when he made that comment."
The complaint filed in court documents states that Hundley told Bennett to "shut that 'n-word' baby up."
"I could not believe that he would say something like that to a baby, or about a baby," Bennett told the news station. After making the comment, Hundley then allegedly slapped baby Jonah, hitting him in the eye. The family has hired an attorney although they are unsure of whether or not they will be suing.
