Light Shone on Copter Leads to Man’s Arrest

A criminal complaint was filed against a Van Nuys man Friday, accusing him of blinding the crew of an LAPD helicopter with a hand-held spotlight from his frontyard, City Atty. James Hahn said.

Yuval Palmon, 31, is due to be arraigned in Van Nuys Municipal Court on Feb. 27, on one count of interfering with a helicopter by shining a bright light at it. If convicted, he could face up to one year in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.

On Jan. 29, a helicopter crew was flying over a Van Nuys neighborhood, shining its own spotlight on the area to illuminate the ground for officers searching for a burglary suspect, officials said.

The crew reported they were blinded by a bright light coming from a nearby residence. In an attempt to make the person on the ground turn off his light, a crew member shined a light back.

When that was unsuccessful, officers sent to the area to investigate said they found Palmon in his yard and observed him shining a 1-million-candle, hand-held spotlight at the helicopter.

Palmon was taken into custody, but released from the Van Nuys station soon after. The spotlight was confiscated.

Hahn spokesman Mike Qualls said this is the third time someone has been accused of interfering with a helicopter crew this way since a law against it went into effect two years ago. The two other incidents also were in the Valley.