5-year sentence possible for man who pointed laser at helicopter

A 31-year-old Orlando man could face up to five years in federal prison for aiming the light beam from a laser pointer at an Orange County Sheriff's Office helicopter.

Joseph Parrott was accused of pointing the laser at a pilot about 3 a.m. on July 2. Deputies were responding to an attempted burglary near East Colonial Drive when the helicopter pilot reported that a bright green beam light was coming from a 2002 Pontiac sedan.

"Evidence at trial proved that Parrott, a passenger in the car, knowingly aimed the laser beam at the helicopter at least four times," a Department of Justice spokesman said.

A pinhole-sized laser aimed at airplane and helicopter cockpits can temporarily blind pilots or cause permanent damage to their eyes, FBI officials say.

That tiny beam can expand to several feet wide in the sky, and as the light hits the cockpit window, it brightly flashes producing an effect similar to oncoming high beams on a dark road.

Parrott's sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 2.

- Source:  http://www.orlandosentinel.com