[Laser] FBI press release about LASER pointers inaccurate?

[bernieS]

The FBI just issued a press release (see below) 
about the effects and dangers of laser pointers 
directed at distant aircraft.  The veracity of 
some of the statements in the press release seem questionable, such as:

"“It’s equivalent to a flash of a camera if you 
were in a pitch black car at night,”

"Lasers costing as little as $1 can have ranges 
of two miles­strong enough to target a variety of aircraft."

“At 500 feet,” Childs said, “that two-centimeter 
dot you see on your wall can be six feet wide.”

"There have been eye injuries..."

Moreover, the photo in the press release appears 
to be staged--with a stationary aircraft and 
fixed LASER at close range--and it may have been 
taken with a camera lens filter to make the beam 
appear different than it would to the naked 
eye.  A written inquiry to the FBI Press Office 
about this was not responded to.

There's an obvious public interest in the factual 
accuracy of government press releases about 
technology, and LASER experimenters have an 
interest in ensuring that their hobby (and 
freedom) is not endangered by law-enforcement 
agencies acting on false or misleading information.

I co-host a weekly radio program about the 
societal ramifications of telecommunications and 
security technologies and related laws, and we've 
previously discussed the topic of LASER pointers 
and law-enforcement's general reaction to 
them.  We may be discussing this FBI press 
release in an upcoming show.  Any comments from 
your list members on this would be appreciated.  Thank you.

-bernieS
WBAI-FM - Off The Hook



http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2011/september/laser_092611/laser_092611?utm_campaign=email-Immediate&utm_medium=email&utm_source=fbi-top-stories&utm_content=33788

Illegal Use of Laser Pointers a Serious Crime

­ filed under: Field Cases, Field Cases Stories, 
Major Thefts/Violent Crime, Major Thefts/Violent 
Crime Stories, Partnerships, Partnerships 
Stories, Public/Community Outreach, 
Public/Community Outreach Stories, St. Louis Top Stories, Top Story

A St. Louis man's arrest for pointing a laser at 
aircraft reveals dangers to flight crews.

(FBI Photo) What appears as a dot of light on the 
ground can illuminate an entire cockpit,
disorienting a pilot or causing temporary blindness. | Watch Video


Making a Point about Lasers
Illegal Use of Devices a Serious Crime

09/26/11

Justin Stouder was aiming a laser pointer at a 
distant tower from his suburban St. Louis yard 
one April evening in 2010 when a police 
helicopter appeared in his line of sight more than a mile away.

At the time, the 24-year-old had no idea that his 
decision to point the laser at the helicopter was 
a federal felony­or that the beam of light might 
have serious consequences for the pilot and his crew.

“It’s equivalent to a flash of a camera if you 
were in a pitch black car at night,” said St. 
Louis Metropolitan Police Officer Doug Reinholz, 
the pilot on patrol that night when Stouder’s 
green hand-held laser “painted” his cockpit. 
“It’s a temporary blinding to the pilot,” he said 
during a recent news conference highlighting the 
danger of lasers directed at airplanes and helicopters.

Interfering with the operation of an aircraft is 
a crime punishable by a maximum of 20 years in 
prison and a $250,000 fine, and laser incidents 
are on the rise. Since the FBI and Federal 
Aviation Administration (FAA) began keeping 
records of laser events in 2004, “there has been 
an exponential increase every year,” said Tim 
Childs from the Federal Air Marshal Service, who 
serves as a liaison officer with the Bureau on laser issues.
Watch law enforcement arrest a suspect with a laser pointer.


In 2009, there were 1,489 laser events logged 
with the FAA­that is, pilots reporting that their 
cockpits were illuminated by the devices. The 
following year, that figure had nearly doubled to 
2,836, an average of more than seven incidents 
every day of the year. And the overwhelming 
number of the incidents involved green 
lasers­especially dangerous because the human eye 
is most susceptible to damage from the yellow-green light spectrum.

Hand-held lasers­about the size of fountain 
pens­are used legitimately by astronomy hobbyists 
and in industrial applications. Anyone can 
purchase one, and technology has made them 
inexpensive and more powerful. Lasers costing as 
little as $1 can have ranges of two miles­strong 
enough to target a variety of aircraft.

And what appears as a dot of light on the ground 
can illuminate an entire cockpit, disorienting a 
pilot or causing temporarily blindness. That’s 
because the farther the beam travels the more 
spread out it becomes. “At 500 feet,” Childs 
said, “that two-centimeter dot you see on your 
wall can be six feet wide.” To date, no aircraft 
have been lost as a result of laser incidents, he 
added, but there have been eye injuries, and perpetrators have gone to jail.

Those responsible for “lasering” aircraft fit two 
general profiles, Childs explained. 
“Consistently, it’s either minors with no 
criminal history or older men with criminal 
records.” The teens are usually curious or fall 
victim to peer pressure, Childs said. The older 
men simply have a reckless disregard for the 
safety of others. There are also intentional acts 
of laser pointing by human traffickers or drug 
runners seeking to thwart airborne surveillance, Childs added.

As for Justin Stouder, the helicopter pilot he 
lasered helped guide police to his house, where 
he was arrested minutes after the incident.

“I had no idea it illuminated the whole cockpit 
and blinded everybody inside,” Stouder said 
during the news conference. He offered a public 
apology and volunteered to tell his story in the 
hopes of educating the public about the dangers 
of laser pointing. “It was really a selfish mistake,” he said of his actions.

Resources:
- Press release
- More information about laser pointers and safety