Brett Curtis Hair, a 23-year-old from Bakersfield, pleaded guilty to pointing a laser at a Kern County Sheriff's Office helicopter. The incident happened on September 11, 2024. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, his actions created a safety risk for those on board.
At around 12:17 a.m., a helicopter on routine patrol was hit by a bright green laser. The Tactical Flight Officer traced the beam to a home located in the Federal Aviation Administration’s Critical Flight Zone near Meadow Field Airport. Court documents state that the person, identified as Hair, aimed the laser at the helicopter at least 15 more times. When the helicopter hovered over his house, Hair came out of his garage and pointed the laser at the cockpit again, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
In 2024, the Federal Aviation Administration reported 12,840 laser strikes involving aircraft. In one incident, a pilot and a Tactical Flight Officer experienced visual disruptions after a laser was aimed at their aircraft. The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Escobar is prosecuting the case. The defendant, Hair, is scheduled for sentencing on August 4, and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, subject to the court’s review of federal sentencing guidelines and statutory factors, as stated by the U.S. Attorney's Office.
