Florida Man Urinates Toward Family At Fort Lauderdale Airport Gate—Splashes Mother And 7-Year-Old

A mother and her 7-year-old son waiting for a flight at the Fort Lauderdale airport were splashed with urine when a man seated across from them exposed himself and began urinating in their direction on Tuesday morning, November 3. Deputies arrested the 48-year old local man on six charges. The arrest affidavit says this happened at gate E6, which tells me this is either an American Airlines or JetBlue passenger. The family said the man was facing them when he unbuttoned his pants and let loose. The father avoided the blast. “Several other passengers were present in the immediate area at the time of the incident,” Powell wrote. “As Raben exposed himself and began urinating, the surrounding passengers dispersed from the area.” The charges were: Battery involving an adult causing a child to come into contact with bodily fluids. Battery. Three counts of indecent exposure. Disorderly intoxication. Go figure: Florida has an actual felony specifically covering an adult knowingly causing, or attempting to cause, a child to come into contact with urine or certain other bodily substances by projecting or expelling them. They knew they needed this. It’s a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison. He was released on $5,000 bond. Airport surveillance footage of the incident has not been released. Local 10 News reporting on the Fort Lauderdale airport arrest “Urine trouble now, buddy,” one Reddit commenter offered. This happens more than you’d expect (or at least, more than anyone would hope). At Memphis airport a man urinated over a woman sleeping in the terminal. Earlier this year, an Air Canada passenger was filmed urinating on the floor at a Calgary gate while bystanders wondered whether he was sleepwalking. And once you’re on board, getting away becomes harder. A Frontier Airlines passenger who said urine ran onto his leg and shoes was offered a $75 voucher. I’ve been writing about this long enough that the New York Times once interviewed me about what to do when another passenger urinates on you. Nobody should be surprised that the perpetrator in this case was a Florida Man. Though the meme itself is somewhat self-perpetuating, sort of like the 2001 summer of the shark despite no evidence that there was actually any spike in shark attacks. The state’s public records law helps make arrest material accessible, though they’re not alone here. There’s actually academic scholarship arguing it’s our existing priors about Florida that make Florida stories more social shareable. Topics on this page