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US: 18 months in prison for aiming a laser at a California Highway Patrol airplane

David Walter Fee, 22
Fresno, California, US


Fee was sentenced September 29 2014 to 18 months in prison, plus two years of supervised release, for aiming a laser at a California Highway Patrol aircraft. He could have received five years and a $250,000 fine for illuminating Air 43 up to 50 times with a “powerful green laser pointer” according to the FBI.

During the incident, the pilot suffered temporary blindness and Air 43 was forced to break away from a burglary in progress at a Fresno middle school.

Zarate’s co-defendent, Andrew Zarate, was sentenced November 3 2014 to one year in prison.