Man Sentenced To 14 Years For Shining A Laser At An Aircraft

14 years? I would think 90 days in the county nail would get the message across.
 
Geico266 said:
14 years? I would think 90 days in the county nail would get the message across.
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It doesn't. And 14 years won't either. Too many of these goofs don't read the news. Maybe don't read at all. Or watch the news on TV. Too busy watching "reality" shows. Ugh.

Dan
 
Well, I'd imagine the group reading this forum are a tad more enlightened than the general public about lasers and aircraft. But, with that said, the article stated the laser he used was "13 times more powerful than a typical handheld laser pointer".

While considering myself a part of the 'more enlightened group', I have to admit I sorta wonder what that means. How powerful is that and is it available to the general public? Did this guy have some sort of super commercial grade laser or just a hand held laser pointer modified with AA batteries instead of AAA's?
 
Captain said:
Well, I'd imagine the group reading this forum are a tad more enlightened than the general public about lasers and aircraft. But, with that said, the article stated the laser he used was "13 times more powerful than a typical handheld laser pointer".

While considering myself a part of the 'more enlightened group', I have to admit I sorta wonder what that means. How powerful is that and is it available to the general public? Did this guy have some sort of super commercial grade laser or just a hand held laser pointer modified with AA batteries instead of AAA's?
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Your average key-chain laser pointer is in the 3-5mW range, but some quite higher are easily available: http://www.wickedlasers.com/ The most powerful one I've got is an older model from that site that is rated at 250mW continuous and peaks around 350mW; Assuming the one he used was on the high-end (5mW) of a "typical" one, mine maxes out at approx. 70 times greater...
 
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You guys did see the part about it was a police helicopter?! Right? If this had been a Cessna 152 with Joe Regular at the yoke, it would have been a $3000 fine and six months probation. The police really, really, really hate people that attack them and the courts back them up. This is nothing more than the police saying- "You fok with us, we'll fok with you." It has almost zero to do with aviation safety.
 
Dav8or said:
You guys did see the part about it was a police helicopter?! Right? If this had been a Cessna 152 with Joe Regular at the yoke, it would have been a $3000 fine and six months probation. The police really, really, really hate people that attack them and the courts back them up. This is nothing more than the police saying- "You fok with us, we'll fok with you." It has almost zero to do with aviation safety.
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Sadly this is about spot on. Go slap a horse on the ass. Nothing happens unless there happens to be a cop sitting on it. Now you've 'assaulted a police officer' and good luck to you. How a horse is a police officer I don't know...but that's where we are.
 
14 years might be a little too much. In this case however, I really hope the reporters do their job and spread the word. This will work as a great example to those who don't know better.
 
I'm glad someone actually got caught. I've been victim to laser attacks a few times in the past. Luckily this last time the student was flying an approach under foggles which likely would have limited his exposure to blinding. Being lit up with a Green blob of extremely bright light on a low approach ILS was a bit unnerving.
 
Picked the wrong target this time.
 
I was hoping Jesse would give us an update after he got lased in Omaha. He was working with police, but never heard the rest of the story.
 
MachFly said:
14 years might be a little too much. In this case however, I really hope the reporters do their job and spread the word. This will work as a great example to those who don't know better.
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He had a significant criminal history and he was a gangster. Hence the longer sentence. Funny though how it took the lasing of a police helicopter to lock him up for a long time versus any of his previous crimes against normal people that apparently had minor consequences for him.
 
The green ones are typically much brighter. While you can get the red ones just about anywhere, cheap enough to be tradeshow giveaways, the greens are a bit pricier. I paid $70 for mine a few years back. Margy asked me what was so special about green and I pointed out that it wasn't so much the color but the brightness. She pointed out all her docents had the green lasers for pointing out things hanging in the museum. I pointed out they were all geeks too.
 
flyingron said:
The green ones are typically much brighter. While you can get the red ones just about anywhere, cheap enough to be tradeshow giveaways, the greens are a bit pricier. I paid $70 for mine a few years back. Margy asked me what was so special about green and I pointed out that it wasn't so much the color but the brightness. She pointed out all her docents had the green lasers for pointing out things hanging in the museum. I pointed out they were all geeks too.
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The green are not exactly "brighter"... If we compare two identical 100mW lasers, except one is red (635nm) and one is green (532nm), then they technically have the same "brightness" measured as the output power. It's just that human eyes are most sensitive to the wavelengths in the 550-565nm area, with green being the closest to that range.
 
Dan Thomas said:
It doesn't. And 14 years won't either. Too many of these goofs don't read the news. Maybe don't read at all. Or watch the news on TV. Too busy watching "reality" shows. Ugh.

Dan
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The heck of it is, this is pretty much spot on.

If our method punishing crime is no longer a deterrent to others, then what do we do? Public floggings and hangings in the town square? Perhaps a new reality show featuring such punishments?

If what we are doing now no longer is a deterrent, then why are we doing it? Are we only seeking revenge?

Perhaps it is that too many peoples livelihoods are tied to incarcerating citizens?

How can you make a living as a hangman if there is nobody to hang?

-John
 
It's stupid, sure, but I doubt that most people that point lasers at aircraft realize the severity of their actions. They're just playing around seeing if they can even see the dot on the aircraft.
 
Gerhardt said:
It's stupid, sure, but I doubt that most people that point lasers at aircraft realize the severity of their actions. They're just playing around seeing if they can even see the dot on the aircraft.
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Are we their victims, or are they our victims?

What if the person who had been doing it was a person of color, a female, of the Muslim faith, and was confined to a wheelchair, would that person be given a 14 year sentence?

-John
 
Gerhardt said:
It's stupid, sure, but I doubt that most people that point lasers at aircraft realize the severity of their actions. They're just playing around seeing if they can even see the dot on the aircraft.
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What if I play around with a sniper rifle and decide to see if I can make a perfectly round hole in somebody's body? These days lasers are getting powerful enough to do real damage, just like any other weapon. The consequences should be similar.
 
Captain said:
Well, I'd imagine the group reading this forum are a tad more enlightened than the general public about lasers and aircraft. But, with that said, the article stated the laser he used was "13 times more powerful than a typical handheld laser pointer".

While considering myself a part of the 'more enlightened group', I have to admit I sorta wonder what that means. How powerful is that and is it available to the general public? Did this guy have some sort of super commercial grade laser or just a hand held laser pointer modified with AA batteries instead of AAA's?
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There are "pointers" and then there are the really serious research lasers

http://www.coherent.com/products/?834/Lasers

which almost anyone can buy. There's also an entire category inbetween that are also very high powered. And available to anyone with the $$$

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...g&matchtype=&gclid=CJLNvbiLi70CFeZAMgodTDwAJw
 
MachFly said:
What if I play around with a sniper rifle and decide to see if I can make a perfectly round hole in somebody's body? These days lasers are getting powerful enough to do real damage, just like any other weapon. The consequences should be similar.
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I was afraid that my comments would be taken as justifying people playing with lasers. That's certainly not the case. I'm just saying that I don't think people think of them as being dangerous. They think of them as toys.
 
Gerhardt said:
I was afraid that my comments would be taken as justifying people playing with lasers. That's certainly not the case. I'm just saying that I don't think people think of them as being dangerous. They think of them as toys.
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Okay, I understand what your saying and agree with you. My comment should be more directed to people who "play" with them.
 
Dav8or said:
You guys did see the part about it was a police helicopter?! Right? If this had been a Cessna 152 with Joe Regular at the yoke, it would have been a $3000 fine and six months probation. The police really, really, really hate people that attack them and the courts back them up. This is nothing more than the police saying- "You fok with us, we'll fok with you." It has almost zero to do with aviation safety.
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I was once lit up by a laser multiple times on one flight in class C airspace. I determined the precise address of the source and relayed that to ATC who relayed it to the local police. I never saw any police response during the remaining hour that I was flying around that area. I met with them after landing, which took about a hour and a half for an officer to arrive, whom had no interest what so ever in even knocking on their door.

Local media pressure finally resulted in the local pd and the FSDO investigating, but it was too late at that point.
 
jesse said:
I was once lit up by a laser multiple times on one flight in class C airspace. I determined the precise address of the source and relayed that to ATC who relayed it to the local police. I never saw any police response during the remaining hour that I was flying around that area. I met with them after landing, which took about a hour and a half for an officer to arrive, whom had no interest what so ever in even knocking on their door.

Local media pressure finally resulted in the local pd and the FSDO investigating, but it was too late at that point.
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Yep, and had you been a police helicopter, they would have called out the SWAT vans and surrounded the guy's house! The police protect and serve... themselves, first and foremost. After that, it's all down to the individual officer whether or not they give a ****.
 
Bet this guy isn't going to get prosecuted :-)
Forward to 1:00.

 
Irish_Armada said:
He had a significant criminal history and he was a gangster. Hence the longer sentence. Funny though how it took the lasing of a police helicopter to lock him up for a long time versus any of his previous crimes against normal people that apparently had minor consequences for him.
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Sorry, people who are arrested on a specific offense should get the same sentence as anyone else sentenced for the same offense, regardless of past unrelated offenses. Do you think you should get a bigger fine for jaywalking because you once ran a stop sign? Unrelated offenses.

This is how we create a permanent criminal underclass.
 
I think 14 years is excessive. It's more than what's needed to dissuade people from doing it and more than I want to pay to keep someone locked up.
 
bullwinkle said:
Sorry, people who are arrested on a specific offense should get the same sentence as anyone else sentenced for the same offense, regardless of past unrelated offenses. Do you think you should get a bigger fine for jaywalking because you once ran a stop sign? Unrelated offenses.

This is how we create a permanent criminal underclass.
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There is a lot of truth in this statement.

What I don't get is people who falsely accuse someone of a crime are rarely prosecuted. If you maliciously accuse someone of a crime you should face the same punishment as the crime alleged.

Purjury is another crime that is rarely prosecuted. People now routinely lie under oath with no fear of repercussions, but lie to a federal agent ( who can lie to you all day long) and you are looking at jail time.
 
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14 years is all & well as long as they could prove BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT that he did it. I sure as hell wouldn't want an innocent spending 14 years in the pokey just to set an example.
 
bnt83 said:
14 years is all & well as long as they could prove BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT that he did it. I sure as hell wouldn't want an innocent spending 14 years in the pokey just to set an example.
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Why do you want to pay upwards of $50,000 a year for this moron to rot in a general prison?
 
Honestly I think a few weeks in jail would be more than enough. People forget that locking people up costs us money, a lot of it...
 
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