Daniel Katz: Outrage after man who CONFESSED to assaulting sleeping woman on flight WON'T be jailed

In addition to a year of probation, Katz will serve a three-month house arrest, perform 75 hours of community service, and be listed as a sex offender. Clinton appointee Brooklyn Federal Judge Frederic Block, however, rejected the prosecution's demand for jail time because he thought the term was sufficient punishment, as per Daily Mail. "It will impact his ability to find employment and travel. [The] sex offender registry would cause enormous collateral damage."

Block has incorporated the concept of "collateral consequences" into sentences in the past. A man who attempted to import, sell, and possess cocaine in 2016 was sentenced to just one year of probation. According to the New York Times, the court argued that the "collateral consequences" that convicted criminals must endure are sufficient punishment. He said during the sentencing that prison time serves "no useful function other than to further punish criminal defendants after they have completed their court-imposed sentences."

The sexual assault occurred on board Etihad Airways Flight 103 on February 24, 2018, while the flight was traveling from Abu Dhabi to JFK Airport in New York City. Before being sentenced on December 9, Katz reportedly made a groveling statement, according to Yahoo News. He called the sexual assault of an unconscious woman a 'lapse in judgment' and added, "I would give everything to go back in time. In the future, I will always seek to get verbal consent."

In a statement made before Katz's sentence, his victim said that four years later, she is still dealing with the trauma. She said: "It's traumatizing - stuck on a flight for what seemed like days with my abuser. I can't count how many panic attacks or breakdowns I have had over the weight of this. It still makes me feel so small. It's shocking in 2022, no matter how much and well women have fought for rights, that this has to be debated in court whether it's right or wrong. I'm addressing the system that has the power to change things, so another young woman won't hide her abuse."