Man who hit cops with laser, then crashed as he fled, ordered to prison

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A Fresno, California, man has been sentenced by a federal judge to 18 months in prison after having pleaded guilty to firing a laser at a police helicopter.

On Monday, Michael Alvarez became the latest person to be convicted in a string of prosecutions brought by Karen Escobar, an assistant United States attorney who is believed to be the nation's most aggressive prosecutor for such cases.

As Ars reported last November, Alvarez fired a green laser at a police helicopter shortly after midnight on October 22. The Fresno Police helicopter, Air-1, was responding to reports of a domestic disturbance as it was struck three times. The pilot, who was not named, was hit in the eyes directly each time. Air-1 then followed a car traveling northbound on Highway 99 and began to shine its searchlight directly at it. The officers aboard Air-1 radioed down to their colleagues on the ground, where they quickly located a white Toyota Corolla and started following it.

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