Southwest employee hospitalized after being assaulted by female passenger

A Southwest employee was taken to a Dallas hospital Saturday after being assaulted by a passenger at Love Field Airport, according to the airline and the Dallas Police Department. The female passenger "verbally and physically" assaulted the female operations agent shortly after being asked to get off the flight she had just boarded from Dallas to La Guardia Airport in New York City, Southwest said. Dallas Police said that shortly after boarding, 32-year-old Arielle Jean Jackson had a verbal altercation with an operations agent in the back of the plane, then was asked to exit the aircraft. As she was exiting, Jackson got into another verbal altercation with a second agent and struck her with a "closed fist on the head," the airline said. Jackson was charged with aggravated assault, Dallas Police say. Jail records show she is being held on a $10,000 bond. The employee was transported to a local hospital and released on Saturday evening, according to Southwest's email. She is at home resting, the airline said. "Southwest Airlines maintains a zero-tolerance policy regarding any type of harassment or assault and fully support our employee as we cooperate with local authorities regarding this unacceptable incident," the email said.<br/>