By City News Service
Apr 12, 2021
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A Hollywood man was sentenced today to probation and fined $500 for recklessly operating a drone that crashed into a Los Angeles Police Department helicopter and forced an emergency landing.
Andrew Rene Hernandez pleaded guilty in January to a class-A misdemeanor charge of unsafe operation of an unmanned aircraft. Federal prosecutors in Los Angeles said the case constitutes the nation's first use of the unmanned aircraft charge.
The case began when LAPD officers were dispatched on a burglary call at a pharmacy in Hollywood during the early morning hours of Sept. 18 and requested air support. As an LAPD helicopter approached the pharmacy, the pilot saw the drone and attempted to evade the unmanned aircraft.