Hanford man arrested for pointing laser at sheriff plane
A Hanford man is in jail after temporarily blinding the flight crew of a King’s County Sheriff plane with a laser pointer Tuesday night, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Shortly before 10 p.m., the Hanford Police Department received a call to assist the Sheriff’s Office with a man seen shining the laser at them.
The plane is equipped with surveillance cameras that showed a man standing in front of a house with his two children using the laser.
Hanford police went to the house in the 1300 block of N. Richmond St. and contacted Michael Quair, 45, who said he was showing his children that his laser could reach the plane. Quair told police he didn’t know it was a serious crime.
He was arrested for pointing the laser at the aircraft – a felony. He’s being held at the Kings County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail.
The Sheriff’s Office said that in 2014, a Fresno man was sentenced to 14 years in prison for shining a laser at a police helicopter and all aircraft/laser incidents are reported to the Federal Aviation Administration.
Troy Pope: 559-441-6442, @troycpope
This story was originally published October 7, 2015 at 10:51 PM with the headline "Hanford man arrested for pointing laser at sheriff plane."