MoVal Man Who Lit up Sheriff's Chopper with Laser Beam Sentenced

By City News Service:

A Moreno Valley man who flashed a laser beam into the cockpit of a Riverside County sheriff’s helicopter, momentarily incapacitating the pilot, was sentenced today to two years probation.

Miguel Avalos, 25, pleaded guilty last May to aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft, a felony. In exchange for his cooperation, the U.S. Attorney’s Office decided not to seek federal prison time for the defendant, who could have faced up to five years behind bars.

Riverside-based U.S. District Judge Jesus Bernal imposed the terms stipulated by the prosecution and defense in the plea agreement.

“My client had no intent to shine a laser on the helicopter,” defense attorney Miles Clark told City News Service. “He had just purchased it and wanted to see how far it would reach into the air. But he didn’t want to injure anyone. He’s very sorry for his conduct.”

On the night of Feb. 10, 2014, Avalos flashed the laser on a sheriff’s chopper crew circling Moreno Valley in search of a missing Alzheimer’s disease patient.

The green-colored laser beam struck the pilot in the eyes, “causing the deputy to become momentarily dazed by the intense light ... and lose the ability to see outside the cockpit’s windows,” according to an FBI statement released after Avalos’ arrest.

“Pointing high-powered laser beams at aircraft is not mere mischief, but a potentially deadly activity,” said David Bowdich, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office. “In this case, sheriff’s deputies were responding to a medical emergency and, had it not been for their ability to overcome the distraction in time, the consequences for the occupants of the aircraft and the patient could have been catastrophic.”

Avalos was arrested and charged three months later, following a joint investigation by the sheriff’s department and FBI.

“I think the lesson here is do not use a laser and point it in the air,” Clark said.

(Image courtesy of the FAA)