Suburban man aimed laser pointer at state police plane

Smart like a rock, quick like a tree ...
 
It's like a local case I heard about. Guy with the laser did it from a U-Store-It place in the evening with no one around, will video coverage of the property, and had to use his own ID to enter....

Ron Wanttaja
 
Am I missing something.??

The date on the recording reads 2003 while the headline reads 2023.... typo.??
 
Defn: Murder is the most serious of the types of homicide charges, as it requires malice and intention. Manslaughter is less severe because of the lack of premeditation or intent to kill, but they are also felonies.

So if any aircraft crashed, with death or serious injury to occupants, it wouldn't be a flimsy misdemeanor. So why not charge with attempted manslaughter or worse to begin with? It's interfering with aviation, which is a federal offense.
 
murphey said:
Defn: Murder is the most serious of the types of homicide charges, as it requires malice and intention. Manslaughter is less severe because of the lack of premeditation or intent to kill, but they are also felonies.

So if any aircraft crashed, with death or serious injury to occupants, it wouldn't be a flimsy misdemeanor. So why not charge with attempted manslaughter or worse to begin with? It's interfering with aviation, which is a federal offense.
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Because attempted anything requires specific intent. And has any plane ever come close to crashing from a laser pointer?

ETA: According to one article, he'd targeted "several" airliners departing Ohare and Midway carrying "hundreds" of passengers. I wonder why they didn't order ground stops at both airports.
 
Lindberg said:
Because attempted anything requires specific intent. And has any plane ever come close to crashing from a laser pointer?
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Case I referred to earlier, the pilot completely lost his night vision. Couldn't see the runway lights, even 15 minutes later. Had to turn the panel up all the way just to read the gauges. He was concerned about permanent damage. Airplane had synthetic vision, that's how he landed. Took his eyes a week to recover.

Think I found the news report related to it; the idiot with the laser was being charged with "first-degree unlawful discharge of a laser".

Ron Wanttaja
 
Martinez is charged with two counts of misdemeanor disorderly conduct.

So, pay a parking ticket and do it again? If he was playing loud music he'd have about the same charge.
 
wanttaja said:
Case I referred to earlier, the pilot completely lost his night vision. Couldn't see the runway lights, even 15 minutes later. Had to turn the panel up all the way just to read the gauges. He was concerned about permanent damage. Airplane had synthetic vision, that's how he landed. Took his eyes a week to recover.

Think I found the news report related to it; the idiot with the laser was being charged with "first-degree unlawful discharge of a laser".

Ron Wanttaja
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Can you share the NTSB report?
 
Lindberg said:
Can you share the NTSB report?
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I heard it from the pilot involved, at an EAA meeting a couple of months back. From this news report, it apparently happened near Arlington, WA (AWO) on the 20th of November 2022.

https://komonews.com/news/local/faa...d-crime-first-degree-unlawful-discharge-laser

Doesn't seem to be on the FAA list of incidents. The pilot did comment he had trouble getting any of the Feds interested, and pushed through with the local police.

Ron Wanttaja
 
Pointing a laser at an aircraft is a federal offense. However, Illinois is one of a handful of states that also has a law against it. It sounds like these charges were at the state level. Hopefully the feds come down on him too.
 
This CAN be a big deal. Just because there hasn’t been a crash because of it, doesn’t meant we should wait until there is a crash to address it.

I’ve been lazed. Not pleasant, but mine was not debilitating.
 
I have one of those visible beam lasers. About the size of a double-A flashlight it's great for teaching astronomy and reading star charts. Be careful turning it on in a room with mirrors or glass top tables though as it can quickly turn into a scene from Mission Impossible with a dozen laser beams shooting all over. Pointing it at airplanes is pretty stupid but pointing it at police helicopters is a whole level beyond stupid. At least he got his picture on the internet.
 
I wonder if lasing motorists became a "thing", would the public suddenly figure out the problems caused by lasers?
 
luvflyin said:
What does he lives in the Suburbs have to do with anything?
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It has to do with this: 2 mis-demeanors that will not get prosecuted, perp is from Berkley, IL in Cook County,IL, you have to do murder and might get prosecuted there now, and no jail time. A certain type of County prosecutor running the show,supported by a certain man with billions,. sigh, this guy will get off unless the Feds come in crime is rampant and this suburb borders Chit Town, same county
 
Extreme example of helicopter lasing in Egypt... if a poster child case was needed.

 
luvflyin said:
What does he lives in the Suburbs have to do with anything?
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Well if you get killed in a car crash you will most likely be forever eulogized in the news as a "motorist" because that's pretty much all they've got on you.
 
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