Yes, under several different laws, each with its own conduct and intent requirements. California has separate statutes for discharging a laser at an occupied aircraft, shining a bright light at an aircraft to interfere with it, aiming a laser at a person in a threatening manner, and aiming one at a peace officer. Aiming a laser at an aircraft can also be a separate federal crime.
Aiming a laser at an aircraft
Penal Code section 247.5 applies to anyone who “willfully and maliciously discharges a laser at an aircraft, whether in motion or in flight, while occupied.” An “aircraft” is any contrivance intended for and capable of carrying people through the airspace. A “laser” is defined partly by output: when discharged, the device must exceed one milliwatt continuous wave in the ultraviolet, visible, or infrared range.
Section 247.5 is a wobbler. The statute makes it punishable as either:
- A misdemeanor: county jail for as long as 1 year, or a $1,000 fine.
- A felony: 16 months, 2 years, or 3 years under Penal Code section 1170(h), or a $2,000 fine.
The felony sentence is normally served locally, because Penal Code section 1170(h) places it in county jail. It moves to state prison only in listed situations, for example when the person has a prior or current serious or violent felony conviction or must register as a sex offender. Section 247.5 does not apply to laser development activity by or on behalf of the United States Armed Forces.
A related statute, Penal Code section 248, covers willfully shining “a light or other bright device” at an aircraft, at an intensity capable of impairing its operation, with the intent to interfere with that operation. The maximum is a $1,000 fine, a year in county jail, or both. Because it carries no state prison or section 1170(h) term, it is a misdemeanor under Penal Code section 17.
Aiming a laser at a person
Penal Code section 417.25 makes it a misdemeanor, except in self-defense, to aim or point a laser scope or laser pointer “at another person in a threatening manner with the specific intent to cause a reasonable person fear of bodily harm.” The maximum is 30 days in county jail.
The section defines a “laser scope” as a portable, battery-powered device capable of being attached to a firearm and of projecting laser light on objects at a distance; it does not have to be attached to a gun. A “laser pointer” is any handheld laser beam device or demonstration laser product that emits a single point of light visible to the human eye. These definitions differ from the one-milliwatt definition in section 247.5.
Aiming a laser at a peace officer
Penal Code section 417.26 is a separate offense with its own elements, not a sentencing add-on to section 417.25. It uses the same laser scope and laser pointer definitions and requires that the person:
- Aimed or pointed the device at a peace officer.
- Did so “with the specific intent to cause the officer apprehension or fear of bodily harm.”
- Knew or reasonably should have known that the person being targeted was a peace officer.
That knowledge element does not appear in section 417.25. A violation is a misdemeanor carrying as much as 6 months in county jail; a second or subsequent violation raises the maximum to 1 year.
The federal aircraft offense
Aiming a laser at an aircraft can also be charged under 18 U.S.C. section 39A, which applies to anyone who “knowingly aims the beam of a laser pointer at an aircraft in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States,” or at the flight path of such an aircraft. The penalty is a fine, up to 5 years of imprisonment, or both, which makes it a Class D felony under 18 U.S.C. section 3559(a). It is an independent federal offense, not an enhancement of a California charge, and its text differs from section 247.5:
- It requires that the person acted knowingly; it does not use section 247.5’s “willfully and maliciously.”
- It reaches aiming at an aircraft’s flight path, not only at the aircraft.
- Its definition of a laser pointer, a device that emits a beam designed to be used as a pointer or highlighter, has no one-milliwatt threshold.
The federal statute does not apply to an authorized individual conducting research and development or flight-test operations for an aircraft manufacturer, the Federal Aviation Administration, or someone the FAA authorizes; to Department of Defense or Department of Homeland Security personnel acting officially for research, development, operations, testing, or training; or to a person using a laser emergency signaling device to send an emergency distress signal.
How this differs from obstruction and brandishing
Resisting, delaying, or obstructing an officer under Penal Code section 148 is a different offense: it requires willfully resisting, delaying, or obstructing an officer in the discharge or attempted discharge of a duty. Brandishing a weapon under Penal Code section 417 is also a separate section; it concerns a deadly weapon or firearm that is drawn or displayed in a rude, angry, or threatening manner. If a laser scope was mounted on a real firearm, how the firearm itself was displayed can raise that separate question.
What the prosecution has to prove
The facts that matter follow each statute’s elements:
- Section 247.5: that the device met the one-milliwatt definition, that the aircraft was occupied, and that the discharge was willful and malicious.
- Section 417.25: that the aiming was in a threatening manner with the specific intent to cause a reasonable person fear of bodily harm, and whether it was in self-defense, which the statute excepts.
- Section 417.26: the specific intent to cause the officer apprehension or fear of bodily harm, and whether the person knew or reasonably should have known the target was a peace officer. In practice, facts such as a uniform, a marked vehicle, distance, and lighting can bear on that question.
- 18 U.S.C. section 39A: that the aiming was knowing, and whether one of the listed exceptions applies.
The Law Offices of David S. Chesley, reachable at (800) 755-5174, can go through the police report and the exact conduct alleged with you.