Sony Pictures Television announced Friday that Jim Thornton's employment with "Wheel of Fortune" has been terminated, effective immediately. The decision follows an investigation into an incident that occurred on an American Airlines flight in May, during which Thornton was allegedly seen accessing a chatroom containing disturbing content.
Photos obtained by the Daily Mail appear to show Thornton, 61, on board an American Airlines jet on May 14, viewing a chatroom. A close-up of the screen reportedly showed messages including one participant describing a restaurant as "a nice hangout for kids" and mentioning "a couple of cute boys and a hot little girl." Another message read "All-you-can-eat Boyffet," and there was a reference to "CP," which the passenger taking the photos believed to be short for child pornography.
According to the passenger who reported the incident, Thornton appeared anxious after being instructed by a flight attendant to close his laptop. The passenger also claimed to have reported the activity to the flight attendant, who then approached Thornton. The pilot of the flight arranged for law enforcement to meet the plane upon arrival at Los Angeles International Airport.
Thornton was questioned by officers at the gate but was not arrested or charged with any crime. American Airlines confirmed in a statement that law enforcement met the flight following concerns reported by a customer onboard.
Thornton's lawyer, Allison Hart, told TMZ that Thornton clicked on the site by mistake. Hart stated that Thornton has been active in suicide-prevention advocacy since losing a close family member to suicide two years ago and has visited chat rooms offering support to individuals suffering from suicidal ideation. According to Hart, Thornton was sent a link to a different chatroom, lifeline.chat, by an acquaintance from a suicide prevention group. This site is intended for people experiencing pedophilic thoughts. Hart claims Thornton left the chatroom after realizing what it was and that the website is "not unlawful" and contains "no unlawful child pornography or other pedophilic content." She added that her client "never viewed, downloaded or consumed any child pornography whether on that commercial flight in May or at any other time."
Despite these claims, Sony Pictures Television suspended Thornton four days prior to his termination. His Facebook account was made private, and his name and photos were removed from the show's social media channels.
Thornton, who began as the announcer for "Wheel of Fortune" in 2011, is rarely seen on the program, which is hosted by Vanna White and Ryan Seacrest. He has also done voice work for Disney-Pixar films and other television programs.