Police should investigate the case properly which will give a clear view to the case.

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the police here are crazy here in this county,the whole world is going crazy,like they said stop selling them,the police are getting you now if you fart,they also love to sit around and get you at the first of the month to get there qouta,after sitting talking on there cells,and eatting sanwiches from the 7/11 trash, and dognuts.

For all of you saying, “If they are so dangerous why can kids buy them…” type remarks. Might want to read this http://bodyodd.msnbc.msn.com/

Kid blinded himself with one he got over the internet.

Big Black,
Where in the article does it even once mention the Leesburg police, which you say are a joke. It mentions the sheriff’s office and then Federal authorities, never the Leesburg police which would have zero jurisdiction in the areas mentioned. Personally you sound like a cop hater and to quote you “a joke”.

The world needs to stop selling and manufacturing all LED lights so everyone will be safe.

I think it would be hard to imagine if you were a 15 year old kid that a tiny green pointer could actually do anything in the cockpit of a plane in flight. Are we assuming the kid had intent to harm the pilot or crash the plane? That would make the difference to me between a stupid kid and a criminal. If the things are so dangerous then why are they so easy to buy?

that 15 year old boy and his friends could be retarded or also there parents are f—- up really parents and kids shoulds lock-up to learn their lesson

Below is a link to a study on the subject to help better identify the issue and the potential consequences. Unfortunately illuminating an aircraft with a laser can and has caused physical injury to flight crew. Refer to pages 4 and 5 of this document.
http://www.faa.gov/library/reports/medical/oamtechreports/2000s/media/200623.pdf

Fifteen year olds should know the difference between right and wrong.  And for those saying that he may not have known that it was illegal, how about a little common sense!  Most laser pointers sold have a warning about pointing it in the eyes.  People need to take personal responsibility for their actions today rather than passing the blame to companies/products.  And the whole, “he’s a child” defense is ridiculous!  If he does get charged w/ a felony for this and it hampers his future of getting into a good school and getting a good job, well, good.  That’s what is called a CONSEQUENCE OF YOUR ACTIONS.  More people need to pause and think of what could happen before they do something.

What if the laser was actually a sniper rifle scope or a laser tagging device that allowed bombs/missles to be guided at the aircraft. Im not sure of the differences in the laser types or how the pilot would tell from the air, just tossing it out as another POV.  Distractions aside, this felony doesn’t seem to be about “blinding the pilot”, but something that could have been a lot worse.

Yeah, he’s “just a kid” until he causes a plane to crash with his little stunts.

The Crime doesn’t fit the punishment! A Felony! The kid will never find a good paying job if he’s charged as a felony
The kid needs a lesson on using a “digging iron” or a “fence post driver”. I know the courts are in business to make money
but I think the kid should do community service. He can pick up all the trash blowing around the parks in the county.

Quite frankly, I say put the kid in juvie until he is 18. Obviously, he has parents who don’t give a damn about what he is doing and can’t keep up with him. It is antics like this that create felony adults. He should be locked up in juvie and his parents charged with the felony. I have no children and don’t want any; they’ve turned into an ungrateful batch of spoiled brats who commit felonies when they don’t get their way. I also don’t want to be affected by these little brats simply because their parents are too lazy to discipline them. If you can’t control them, then don’t breed them for the rest of us to have to put up with.

Sounds like the kid needs a lethal injection.  He won’t do this again!

truly, we have become so “kid” centric that our ‘little darlings’ have become experts at pushing the envelope, fully knowing the potential of their not so innocent pranks.  He does need to be prosecuted as a teen of course, before he becomes a disgruntled adult with a ‘mission’ - Timothy McVay served our country and then came home a killed many innocent AMERICAN men women and children; many of those children were just infants.  Most importantly, the parents are definitely culpable.

I agree with dean.  Cane his little behind.  Another example of parents not keeping close enough tabs on their bad kids.

Why don’t we just cane him like they do in Singapore?

wHAT WOULD YOU SAY IF HE CAUSED THE PLANE TO CRASH? STILL SET HIM FREE? SUPPOSE SOME OF YOUR LOVED ONE’S WERE ON THE PLANE AND IT CRASHED? WOULD YOU STILL SET HIM FREE?

It is a felony to point a laser in the cockpit of an aircraft.  The reason for the law is it endangers the lives of others.  The kid did it before only pointing at cars on that occasion.  I think this kid needs to be punished and btw, where are his parents?  I love the people who want to “excuse him” for “being a kid.”  Somewhere along the way, we’ve become a kid-centric society and we do everything to protect these little darlings.  Enough already.

I do not think it is against the law to point a laser at a vehicle, even a police cruiser.

The only statue I could find: Laser, pointing at law enforcement officer, P&P officer etc. ASL-1343-M2 §18.2-57.01 0-6M 7/1/2000

The article never mentioned he pointed it at the law enforcement officer.  If pointing a laser at a vehicle is against the law then every speeding ticket in VA that used a laser radar gun should be thrown out of court.  (If any other reader could confirm this I would like to know, IANAL)

If any of you had brains you would realize that the LAW is the LAW - you charge them with the felony because it ?IS a felony. The courts can amend the charge later to a misdemeanor. It COULD have resulted in the death of hundreds of people…NOT a laughing matter! Another example of the thought that no one is accountable for ther actions. But stupid is as stupid does…at age 15 he should have the intelligence AND parental guidance to act like he is intelligent…peer pressure is NOT an exuse…stand up and be accountable for your actions. GOD JOB Leesbur Police and all law enforcement agencies involved. You did your job - now the courts can do theirs.

PS - the comment on 9-11 is another example of someone who has kNO RESPECT for the soldiers, fire, EMS, and law enforcement people who risk their lives EVRY DAY to give you the freedom to be stupid…People who have no respect will ever get any respect from me!!!

any of you posting comments supporting the punishment of this boy are morons and need to get a life. this is so f’ing stupid. leesburg police are a joke.

My 10 year old has known for years not to throw things out of the window of a moving vehicle. Aside for the issue of causing litter, she knows it is against the law and why.

You said charged with - was he convicted and if so, what did he get?

Yeah, FELONY charge.  Just like the guy I worked w/ that had a 12 y.o. charged w/ a felony;  THOWING A MISSILE AT A MOVING AUTO.  Kid tossed a crumpled up paperball out the window of a schoolbus.  Yeah, those Leesburg Police are real tough.

Last comment from Concerned Citizen 04.38 says it all and says it well. By the way, it lazer pens are so dangerous and yet so freely available, what’s to stop a couple of hundred people in sync bringing the entire air traffic to a halt ... ridiculous

an over reaction to a non event. If the laser pointers are so dangerous then stop selling them in the stores as an impulse item right at the cash register. Another great example of how misguided law enforcement is these days.

I totally agree.  He is 15 and just fooling around with some friends should not ruin his life.  On the other hand he should be punished and if this means some time in a juvenile detention center, so be it.  He needs to understand that his irrisponsible actions can have serious consequences.  His parents also have to be closely involved.

Ah yet another terrorist in training.  Everyone seems to be so naïve.  This is not just another ordinary kid; he has some deep problems and need not only jail time, but intervention.  Remember the terrorist who brought down the World Trade Center and tried to destroy the Pentagon were ONLY children at one time.  This kid need to be stopped now before he irreversible affects the lives of many, many people.  Whether he kills a mother, father in their car, leaving a family destroyed, a plane to overshoot the runway killing many, or metro train to crash .  The parents should be held responsible, pay a hefty fine, the kid should go to jail, and his friends need to have a record that they were involved

@Sknepper - while you are most likely correct, one can hope if he is found guilty he will be punished properly. I’m not inclined to think jail is the right place (unless there is more than these two things) for him - but community service (and requiring the parents to tote him back and forth) until his 18th b-day seems fair to me. In my opinion, the parents are at least somewhat responsible for the boys actions.

Seems like alot you dont understand how Virginia works…We are the Kings of Overcharging people…All so they will take a plea deal and avoid the cost of a trial. They will offer this kid either an article 251 deal. ( slap on the wrist basiclly ) or a high level Misdemanor but anyone who thinks it will be a convicton on a class 6 Felony hasnt been to court recently in Va. That being said the Kids a punk and deserves whatever he gets, I guess Police cars werent enough so now he targets planes, He doesnt need to be convicted he need to have his Butt kicked in preferably by his father or an older sibling. Im sure he still thinks its funny but when hes picking his teeth up off the ground i wonder if it will be so funny to him

all hail leesburg police

This boy child should be strapped to the table of justice, where a green laser beam will slowly dissect him, until not even James Bond can save him!

i love ur idea…

Any bright light can temporarily impact a pilot’s ability to see properly.  Ever been inside a flight deck? You are surrounded by all types of displays, lighted instruments, switches, etc. During descent into or ascent out of an airport, pilots’ attention is critical to to the safety of the flight.  A momentary disctraction can and HAS caused crashes.
I am sure the court will be fair about this.  But this MUST be handled as a very serious offense.
Kids being kids is not an excuse.  He definitely could have killed many people with his actions

I think the majority of people on here are missing the point.  This kid was cited for this infraction previously (against a police car), didn’t learn his lesson and was caught again, this time aiming his laser pointer at a more high profile target.  Maybe the only way that he and his parents will learn will be to prosecute him.  Obviously his parents have lost control of this kid.  He shows no respect for authority.

if you’ve ever used a laser pointer you would know that to line it up with your retina enough to do damage is very difficult.  Especially in a plane with a pilot hopefully looking forward and not down at the ground. It shouldn’t be done, but to think its going to blind a pilot is a real stretch.

David - Do you think that 15 year old airline passengers should be allowed to enter the cockpit and cover the pilot’s eyes for a few minutes?  Since box-cutters are still widely available and inexpensive, do you think they could pose a risk to aircraft?  While I agree that our government has crossed the line with certain things like “electronic strip searches,” I am glad we take it seriously when people show no regard for the lives of hundreds of people on an airplane.  Also, despite the fact that the offense is a felony, I am confident that our courts will not overreact when handing down a sentence to this little punk.

David, that comment was hilarious…..  brought back memories when I was Dennis the Menace as a kid in the 70s

I forgot to add, that kid better stay off my lawn.

If these cheap $10 chinese green lasers were so dangerous that they can take down a 747 they would not be allowed for sale.  They obviously were not blinded enough not to detect where it was originating from.
Hopefully common sense will prevail and not bring charges intended for terrorists or people who are actually trying to bring harm to this country - as opposed to a 15 year-old boy, being a 15 year-old boy.

If it is the same kid who was pointing it at cars, obviously he didn’t learn his lesson the first time.  Throw the book at the kid (as a kid not an adult)and his parents for that matter.

It is interesting that noone has mentioned the possibility of the pilot being blinded temporarily and possibly crashing to the ground killing all on board. It seems to me that your concerns are misplaced.

Where in the world did you see anyting about him being tried as an adult?

You all need to go outside and play in traffic…geezus….

My point is that government would rather prosecute the legal juvenile versus the Illegal….. but given your response you wouldn’t want to prosecute them either….  who’s the Moron now.

A typically moronic response from you…
An “illegal” alien (and I use the term loosely, because the law is not equal applied on this issue), are usually adults, and have a knowledge that what they’re doing is wrong, and why.
The act of crossing the border is deliberate, for monetary gain.  As much as I dislike the Tea-Party / Arizona immigration Nazis, there is a legal logic to it and they are

If that 15 year old boy is going to be tried as an adult, then he AUTOMATICALLY should earn every legal adult right including:
- right to consume alcohol
- right to sexual consent
- right to possess alcohol
- right to marry
- right to carry a firearm
- right to vote
- ability to join the military

If you’re NOT going to do this, and of course we should not, then you should NOT be trying children as adults, unless the crime is particularly heinous or with deliberate and premeditated malicious intent.

Again, it doesn’t matter until its YOUR little Johnny that decides to hot-wire a car or shoplift.

I’d rather prosecute a 15 year old legal citizen than an Illegal standing on the corner so at not to upset the Open Borders crowd.  LOL!

The Loudoun Couty Sheriff’s Office and Virginia prosecutors (much like a lot of other jurisdictions) have simply gone law-enforcement crazy, and the post-Sept. 11th madness needs to stop.

Of course what the boy supposedely did is a crime, and it needs to be addressed.
However, charging a 15 year old child with a felony because of minor childhood shenanigans is a perverse interpretation and execution of the law. 
People, these are your children that these well-meaning officers and prosecutors are affecting for the rest of their lives, for relatively minor crimes.  A boy with a laser pointer CANNOT bring down an airliner.  It has never happened, and never will and it is outside of the realm of possibility.  This is only post 9/11 paranoia that will be aimed at YOUR children.

Of course, no one cares…until YOUR kid is caught making a mistake and gets tried as an adult.

We need to stand up to the Attorney Generals and Prosecutors and Legislators who wield this authority behind a curtain of bureaucracy.

Better check your kid’s school bag while you’re at it.