A Jacksonville man was arrested on July 19 after an off-duty deputy reported that a gun was pointed at him and a blue laser was shone into his vehicle during what police are calling a road-rage incident. Detectives said they used license-plate readers to flag a gray 2018 Honda Civic and traced it to a downtown parking garage, where officers carried out a felony takedown and detained both the driver and a passenger. The driver now faces third-degree felony counts, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and misuse of a laser lighting device.
What Officers Say They Found And The Charges
According to News4JAX, officers reported finding a Glock pistol in the driver’s door pocket and an AR-15-style BB rifle on the floor behind the driver’s seat. The Glock’s magazine contained live 9mm rounds, but there was no round in the chamber. Investigators also recovered a blue laser device and a charger from the center console, and testing reportedly showed the device emitted a blue beam and could be mounted on a firearm. The arrest report lists the case as cleared by arrest and notes that detectives booked the driver on aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill and misuse of a laser lighting device.
State Law And What It Means
Florida’s misuse-of-laser statute, section 784.062, makes it a third-degree felony to shine, point or focus a handheld laser device at someone who is operating a motor vehicle, according to the Florida Legislature. The law also creates a separate violation for directing a laser at a law-enforcement officer in specified circumstances and was written to cut down on incidents that can distract or briefly blind drivers, pilots and patrol personnel. Because the statute classifies the behavior as a third-degree felony, prosecutors can pursue laser charges in addition to assault or weapons counts in cases like this one.
Driver's Account And Court Timeline
The driver told investigators he had been in the car all day working for a delivery service and admitted using the laser, saying he waved it “out the sunroof and at his dashboard,” but he denied pointing a firearm, the arrest report states, according to News4JAX. The passenger declined to speak with police. The driver was taken to the Pretrial Detention Facility, and court records attached to the arrest report show that a probable-cause filing was submitted, with a docket entry scheduled for Aug. 11.
Incidents Like This Have Drawn Wider Attention Across Florida
Law-enforcement agencies around Florida have been responding to laser incidents in recent months, including cases in which lasers were aimed at aircraft and patrol helicopters. In one example, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office reported that deputies arrested a man in March after flight crews were struck by a laser beam while airborne, a case the agency described as felony misuse of a laser lighting device. Incidents like that highlight why Florida’s statute is routinely used when laser beams could distract or endanger drivers, pilots or officers.
