`Eccentric` jailed for shining laser pen at Clutha police helicopter pilot
A lecturer who repeatedly shone a laser pen at the Police Scotland helicopter piloted by David Traill the day before he lost his life in the Clutha tragedy has been sent to prison for 14 months.
Mar 31, 2016
By Nick Hudson
A lecturer who repeatedly shone a laser pen at the Police Scotland helicopter piloted by David Traill the day before he lost his life in the Clutha tragedy has been sent to prison for 14 months.
Colin Lochrie, 31, targeted the helicopter with two police officers on board as it flew over his home heading back to its base on November 28, 2013.
Mr Traill was forced to take evasive action to save his vision being affected by the green light that repeatedly lit up the cockpit.
Those on the helicopter were able to alert police on foot and Lochrie was arrested.
He admitted shining the Amazon-bought pen at the aircraft and told officers: I wanted to see what it was doing.
On November 29, 2013, ten people including Mr Traill and two police observers, Police Constables Kirsty Nelis and Tony Collins lost their lives when the helicopter crashed on to the Clutha Vaults pub beside the River Clyde in Glasgow.
At Glasgow Sheriff Court, Lochrie pleaded guilty to culpably and recklessly directing the laser beam at the helicopter to the danger of other persons.
Sentencing him, sheriff Bill Totten told him: “I wish to emphasise that this is not a case in which Mr Lochrie made a deliberate attempt to impair the pilot`s vision.”
He told him that he did deliberately shine the laser beam at the helicopter and has accepted his guilt and “there is a clear need to punish anyone who commits this serious crime”.
Lochrie was given a lesser sentence of 14 months reduced from 18 months for admitting the charge.
The court heard that the helicopter was returning from a task in the Dumbarton area and flew over the west end of Glasgow. Constables Niall McLaren and David Graham were on board at the time around 4.45pm.
Procurator fiscal depute Mark Allan said: They became aware of the green laser light beam being directed towards the helicopter, whereby the light beam repeatedly illuminated the cockpit of the helicopter causing the pilot to take evasive action.
The court was told Mr Traill reacted to avoid the beam impairing his vision.
Mr Allan said: The potential danger in that act would be obvious to the court, a situation where a pilot in mid-flight whose vision is distracted, potentially impaired sight of the pilot who has instrumentation and the likes.
Footage from the police helicopter was played to the court showing a green laser light being repeatedly shone towards the cockpit.
The court was told: Information was passed from those within the helicopter to those who were on foot patrol locally.
They were able to identify a particular room within a tenement block at Cecil Street in the west end of Glasgow.
Lochrie answered the door to the police and handed over the laser, saying: It wasnt meant to put people in danger.
Mr Allan said that the pilot tragically lost his life within a day of this incident.
Defence lawyer Ian McLelland told the court: He had bought the pen from Amazon as he used it when he occasionally gave some lectures to friends in relation to Zen Buddhism. “
He always presents as somewhat eccentric both in the person and in thought processes.
The court heard Lochrie wanted to see the helicopter and was not trying to distract the pilot and he deeply regrets not having had the foresight not to have done it.
At a previous hearing sheriff Totten told Lochrie: “The tragedy one day later demonstrates what can happen if for any reason a pilot can not maint