Posted on 03/24/2005 8:08:38 AM PST by MatrixMetaphore
March 24, 2005 -- A New Jersey man accused of pointing a laser at an airplane, temporarily blinding the pilot and co-pilot, was indicted yesterday under an anti-terror law.
David Banach also was accused of lying to the FBI about the Dec. 29 incident, in which a small passenger jet's windshield and cabin were hit three times by a green laser as the plane readied to land at Teterboro Airport.
The charges in the three-count federal indictment were similar to those filed against Banach in a complaint by the FBI in January. The indictment, handed up by a grand jury in Newark, replaces the FBI complaint.
Banach's lawyer, Gina Mendola-Longarzo, said her client was using the laser to look at stars with his daughter when the plane was hit by the beam.
"I think it's an absolute abuse of prosecutorial discretion to charge my client under the Patriot Act for non-purposeful conduct," Mendola-Longarzo said.
"We take the alleged actions of Mr. Banach very seriously, and we will not condone lying to federal agents," U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie said.
A cluster of reports of lasers striking airplanes received wide attention between Christmas and New Year's Day, and prompted Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta to make changes in how pilots report lasers being beamed at airplanes. He also warned that federal officials will aggressively prosecute those caught shining the bright beams into cockpits.
Banach, 38, of Parsippany, remains free on bond pending arraignment, which has not yet been scheduled, his lawyer said.
He faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on one count of interference with pilots of an aircraft "with reckless disregard for the safety of human life," a provision of the Patriot Act passed following 9/11.
And what about perjury?
He wasn't under oath and in court. He provided false statements to an FBI Agent. THAT's the crime he committed (with respect to lieing).
Exactly what would the light be bouncing off to highlight/point out a constellation?
I don't know the mechanics behind how they work. I've done a 2-minute internet search for green laser manufactorers, and one of their "suggested uses" includes stargazing.
Hmm. OK, you've sold me.
The irresponsible liar shouldn't have had more punishments drug onto him via the PA. Unless of course the PA is the new word on punishments.
It hardly seems "cruel and unusual"
Given the population density of the area, his stargazing put thousands of lives at risk. At best, he is staggeringly irresponsible; at worst, assuming it was his intent to hit the plane with the laser, his actions can be accurately construed as terrorist. If he blinded the pilots of that plane, it could well have come down into a dense urban area, perhaps even into New York City, which is not far from that airport.
If the PA is the "new standard" on law, every crime with have an elevated sentence.
Let's see, dedicated men purposely striving to destroy our country and our way of life through a well-financed, well-planned years-long plot vs. some idiot playing with a laser pointer in his back yard having no motive but stupid mischief.
No, I won't equate the two. We already have non-terrorism laws for stuff like this.
Give the government a sledgehammer specifically for smashing bricks, and they'll use that power to make driving nails into drywall easier, with the subsequent damage to the structure.
These lasers have minimal range. You should be able to see and avoid illuminating any plane within range, the rest being way up and out of range.
Or did I get your question wrong? Most red lasers are only easily visible at the point of contact with an object. But green diode lasers have a clearly visible beam, which makes them excellent for astronomy class.
Fine by me. More harsh punishements are needed to scare people into being lawful in the first place.
If the worst thing that could happen to me if I stole was a couple years getting 3 squares a day, I'd do it and consider jail time my "work" I put into it.
Sorry, it's happened before. They used it against the owner of a Las Vegas strip club, Michael Galardi, in a simple local corruption investigation.
Because he thought it was more rational to say, "No, my daughter did it, and I'm willing to testify against her in court."
I don't know what his intention was and hitting aircraft 3 times tells me he is at the very least a complete moron, but there are several legitimate uses for these things and yes they are plenty powerful enough to hit airplanes at any altitude. Pointing problems not withstanding.
Your right, I should not have said first.
But I probably should have said another inevitable among many more undoubtedly to come.
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