Error in the text: 1000mW laser with 532nm wavelength which is green light.

1000nm light is infrared.

Cross posted in https://lemmy.ca/post/64612634

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[–] 0 points 6 months ago (3 children)

Whoa there, chill out. I'm not trying to justify anything and I didn't say anything about shooting a gun into the air at an airplane.

My point was that hitting aircraft with a laser is pretty much a fuck you in the ass federal offense, whereas firing a gun in public, into the ground for example, will most likely only be a local or state level charge, if anything at all, especially if there's no injuries or proved intent of harm.

Also, IANAL.

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  • [–] 3 points 6 months ago*

    Pointing laser pointers at planes is a federal crime because air traffic is federally regulated. Reckless discharge (steady lads) in a high traffic area, which is where flock cameras are located, falls under state jurisdiction because those laws are state regulated.

    The jurisdiction in which a crime is committed does not dictate the severity of the punishment - while lasering a plane generally carries a severe punishment, it's unlikely it would even be noticed by the crew unless you're specifically targeting that plane. It's certainly going to carry a lower sentence than reckless discharge (steady) in a populated area during the commission of a crime.

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