The helicopter then proceeded toward the direction of the laser beam and was struck again by the beam. The pilot and observer were asked to locate the source of the green laser beam and determined that it came from a residence in the 2700 block of Red Cedar Parc Drive South, in O’Fallon.

The pilot and observer saw Smith standing in his driveway with the laser. O’Fallon police responded to that location and observed the Smith with a laser pointer in his hand. He was arrested, and the laser was seized. He told O’Fallon police that he had been drinking and playing around with the laser and pointed it at the helicopter. The police observer in the helicopter reported that he had some short-term visual problems as a result of the laser strike.

“Shining laser pointers at aircrafts is not harmless. It is dangerous for pilots,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Tim Feeney of the FBI St. Louis Division. “This case is among the first nationwide to be prosecuted under a new federal law that specifically says pointing a laser beam at an aircraft or its flight path is a federal felony.”