Drone pilot going to jail

[TheCompletePicture]

https://ktla.com/news/local-news/culver-city-man-gets-2-weeks-in-federal-prison-for-drone-strike-on-plane-during-january-fires/

 

[anotherlab]

More important than the 2 weeks of jail time, the pilot will pay about $156k in restitution and fines.

 

[tstr14]

More important than the 2 weeks of jail time, the pilot will pay about $156k in restitution and fines.

I'm not sure if the fine is more important or not. If this is the guy I think it is, he can afford the fine. But if the conviction is a felony, then the jail time may mean more. Being a convicted felon limits some of your rights and freedoms.

 

[Cafguy]

How is one sentenced to 14 days in prison?! the prison buses dont even come pick them up that often! 14 days of prison time is probably time served. He's a felon now tho so I hope it was worth it. BUT our offender can now brag that he paid for one of the most expensive wing repairs in history. 65,000!!! Did they electroplate the wing in gold??!!

 

[tstr14]

I wonder if they will put him on the "Do not fly" list or maybe the "Do not fly near" list?

 

[AMann]

How is one sentenced to 14 days in prison?! the prison buses dont even come pick them up that often! 14 days of prison time is probably time served. He's a felon now tho so I hope it was worth it. BUT our offender can now brag that he paid for one of the most expensive wing repairs in history. 65,000!!! Did they electroplate the wing in gold??!!

To properly fix a hole in the skin, especially on the leading edge of a wing, it takes removal and replacement of an entire panel- which has many rivets holding it in place. Once they did that, they would have also have done airframe inspections and certifications along with repairing any internal damage they found, and once repaired, the repaint would have been pricy as well. It’s not just a basic hole patch job.

Toyota just repaired peeling paint on my Tacoma cab for free under a recall, and they said it cost Toyota over $9k to fix it so I am a bit surprised it cost only $65k to fix the wing on that plane.

 

[PINEBARON]

airframe inspections and certifications

These alone can be painful and a hassle to get.

 

[Army Vet]

It would be interesting to know the defense strategy that limited his Jail Time.....He deserved so much more.
Plead down?
Federal trial. The FAA should have taken the opportunity to make an example out of him. And put a halt to the idiots!
I am disappointed.

 

[Cafguy]

I wonder if they will put him on the "Do not fly" list or maybe the "Do not fly near" list?

I didnt read anywhere that it actually happened BUT I bet he cant get a trust card anymore.

 

[tstr14]

From a search, convicted felons lose the right to vote, own firearms (which is being contested), hold national office and travel to foreign countries. Some states have additional restrictions that typically can be mitigated by moving to a different state.

 

[Bad Santa]

From a search, convicted felons lose the right to vote, own firearms (which is being contested), hold national office and travel to foreign countries. Some states have additional restrictions that typically can be mitigated by moving to a different state.

The loss of vote isn't accurate. It varies by state.
We have a convicted felon in the white house so that's not true either. He also managed to travel out of the country.

 

[Chip]

How is one sentenced to 14 days in prison?! the prison buses dont even come pick them up that often!

May require drop off at the gate. Does not look or sound like a good time.

 

[MS Coast]

From a search, convicted felons lose the right to ... hold national office ...

Didn't seem to apply to one high profile office holder in the US.

 

[AMann]

These alone can be painful and a hassle to get.

And I bet that the airframe inspection alone was easily over $10k for that.

 

[anotherlab]

From a search, convicted felons lose the right to vote, own firearms (which is being contested), hold national office and travel to foreign countries. Some states have additional restrictions that typically can be mitigated by moving to a different state.

Regaining the right to vote in the US varies from state to state. Some states don't even revoke the right to vote upon a felony conviction.

From a brief search, here is a list of states and what their requirements are for the restoration of voting rights: https://www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/felon-voting-rights

Some countries can restrict the entry of felons, but it's not universal; it can depend on the crime, and waivers can be requested.

The Constitution lists few requirements for federal office, and a criminal record does not disqualify someone from running for a national office.

 

[mavic3usa]

The Constitution lists few requirements for federal office, and a criminal record does not disqualify someone from running for a national office.

Agreed, the People should be able to choose whomever they want to send to Washington to represent them. It's their call, not the judicial system/process which is currently flagrantly on display recently when the judicial branch is weaponized against your adversaries.

I'm a big proponent of once you do your time or fulfill your obligations or complete your punishment, all encumbrances should be released and everything restores (for the most part with very few exceptions) and no one should continue to be under the thumb of the government for the remainder of their lives. I don't know if they have anything for federal (besides pardons) but at the state level, people can expunge their criminal records.

Even for what this guy did, once he's paid up, and done his time and made amends, he should have the opportunity. Since when have second chances become so un-American?

 

[anotherlab]

Even for what this guy did, once he's paid up, and done his time and made amends, he should have the opportunity. Since when have second chances become so un-American?

It's actually the reverse. It's been a growing trend in the last 25 years to restore voting rights to convicted criminals after they have completed their sentences.

 

[mavic3usa]

It's actually the reverse. It's been a growing trend in the last 25 years to restore voting rights to convicted criminals after they have completed their sentences.

If you pay taxes you should be able to vote. Someone tried to change that a few years back, it didn't work out that well for them.

 

[Skyryder]

That guy who did that can more than afford it. He was a big shot CTO at several tech companies making video games racking in billions. Don't know his net worth but I am sure it's in the double digits of millions of dollars. At least he got jail time. Community service is a joke, did you know you can ask the judge to drop all those hours if you just compensate the court? In other words just pay X per hour served. Like minimum wage.

What I want to know is how high he was flying, etc. All they say is he in a restricted emergency zone and few about 1.5 miles from his takeoff point. Being a Technology officer, you would think he knows what a TFR is.

 

[Cafguy]

The pilot wasn’t very high…..in altitude..The drone struck the wing of the plane right about the time it flew over Ben Affleks house in Culver during the palisades fire. I Remember the F.B.I. going to Afflecks house and questioning him.