Kentucky Man Arrested After Shooting Down Drone

McGruber writes: Hillview, Kentucky resident William H. Merideth describes his weekend: "Sunday afternoon, the kids – my girls – were out on the back deck, and the neighbors were out in their yard. And they come in and said, 'Dad, there's a drone out here, flying over everybody's yard.'" Merideth's neighbors saw it too. "It was just hovering above our house and it stayed for a few moments and then she finally waved and it took off," said neighbor Kim VanMeter. Merideth grabbed his shotgun and waited to see if the drone crossed over his property. When it did, he took aim and shot it out of the sky.

The owners showed up shortly, and the police right after. He was arrested and charged with first degree criminal mischief and first degree wanton endangerment before being released the next day. Merideth says he will pursue legal action against the drone's owner: "He didn't just fly over. If he had been moving and just kept moving, that would have been one thing -- but when he come directly over our heads, and just hovered there, I felt like I had the right. You know, when you're in your own property, within a six-foot privacy fence, you have the expectation of privacy. We don't know if he was looking at the girls. We don't know if he was looking for something to steal. To me, it was the same as trespassing."

Comments

Right to Privacy in One's Backyard?

[McGruber]

Here's a key detail from the article:

Merideth's neighbors saw it too. "It was just hovering above our house and it stayed for a few moments and then she finally waved and it took off," said neighbor Kim VanMeter. VanMeter has a 16-year-old daughter who lays out at their pool. She says a drone hovering with a camera is creepy and weird. "I just think you should have privacy in your own backyard," she said.

Re:Right to Privacy in One's Backyard?

[ArmoredDragon]

Firing a weapon in a populated area except in defense of life and limb is a colossally stupid idea

Shotgun pellets don't have a lethal return velocity, unlike a bullet. If he was firing upwards at a drone, then nobody else was in danger. I've been peppered by falling shotgun pellets while hunting once (many people have,) it's just like somebody dropped a bunch of BBs on your head from 10 feet up.

and patently against the law

No, it's not. It depends on where you live. Not every town has ordinances against that, and those that do have certain guidelines for where it is permissible (for example, an indoor or outdoor firing range that meets certain parameters.)

Re:Right to Privacy in One's Backyard?

[mpercy]

"Private landowners retain their right to exclusive use of the airspace for the reasonable enjoyment of their property up to 500 feet above their lands.[3]"

FAA airspace begins above 500 feet. No shotgun will knock down a drone at 500 ft, so the drone must have been below that, probably more like 50 feet, well within the "exclusive" zone.

Re:"...the same as trespassing."

[digsbo]

In some states, castle doctrine applies outside of the boundaries of the home. Also, if someone leaves a recording device on your property in an area where you have an expectation of privacy, you would generally be assumed to have a right to destroy it if it were on the ground.

Misleading headline

[HangingChad]

Hillview Police detective Charles McWhirter of says you can't fire your gun in the city.

He wasn't charged for shooting a drone, he was charged to discharging a gun within city limits. Reckless endangerment doesn't have anything to do with drones it means he was being a risk to public safety.

Re:Third Dimension

[mbeckman]

This instance was illegal. I'm an RC modeler, a licensed helicopter pilot, and a drone builder. This drone was flying illegally by all existing laws.