Ex-Ram Tyoka Jackson must pay $3,000 for pushing flight attendant

3/27/2008 11:01 AM

ST. LOUIS (AP) -Former St. Louis Rams defensive lineman Tyoka Jackson was ordered by a federal jury to pay a flight attendant $3,000 for pushing him on a plane, a tiny portion of the more than $1 million the attendant and his wife had sought.

Jurors on Wednesday ordered Jackson to pay Northwest Airlines attendant Gary Rihn to cover medical expenses for the 2005 incident. Rihn had sought $250,000 in actual damages and $750,000 in punitive damages. Jurors denied the $200,000 sought by Rihn's wife, who claimed her husband changed after the incident.

Rihn claimed Jackson shoved him across an aisle and into another passenger over the proper stowing of a laptop bag. Jackson claimed he acted only after Rihn poked and prodded him.