A federal judge has given a Clovis man 14 years in prison for aiming a laser pointer at a Fresno Police helicopter. It's the longest sentence handed down in a case of its kind. The convicted man is 26 year old Sergio Rodriguez.
Fresno Police Pilot, Ken Schneider, was the target in this particular laser beam case. Schneider says it happened during an August night in 2012. It started with the laser being aimed at Children's Hospital's helicopter. Fresno Police responded and that's when the suspects honed in on their aircraft. The high intensity light created a prism effect inside the cockpit at times, so it took the air crew a considerable amount of time to spot the suspects on the ground. Once the air crew did, they radioed Clovis Police. Officers swooped in and arrested the two people. Schneider says the punishment of 14 years in prison fits the crime.
"Based upon the number of times they attacked us with that laser, the continual tracking of us on wide orbits. The sentence is appropriate considering the potential outcome that this could have had," said Ken Schneider of the Fresno Police Dept.
Air attacks like this against law enforcement, medical helicopters and commercial airliners are on the rise. According to the FAA, there were nearly 4,000 of them in the U.S. last year. In the 34 counties of California's eastern district, there were reports of 94 laser strikes. Most of those occurred near Fresno Yosemite International Airport and Bakersfield Meadows Field Airport.
Jennifer Coleman, the other defendant in this case, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 12th. She faces a maximum of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.