Orlando Man Who Targeted Sheriff's Office Helicopter with Laser Pleads Guilty

ORLANDO, FL—United States Attorney Robert E. O'Neill announces that Frank Newton Anderson (age 43, of Orlando) pled guilty today before Senior United States District Judge Kendall G. Sharp to a one-count Information charging Newton with violating Title 18, United States Code, Section 32(a)(5) and (a)(8); interference with operation of an aircraft. Newton faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. His sentencing is set for April 20, 2011 at 9 a.m. before Judge Sharp.

According to the plea agreement, on April 13, 2010, Newton aimed a green laser beam at an Orange County Sheriff's Office (OCSO) Bell helicopter. The OCSO helicopter was on routine patrol when the green laser beam illuminated the cockpit and temporarily blinded the pilot. The helicopter pilot and the flight observer lost temporary sight of the aircraft's instrumentation and the horizon due to the laser beam. After the cockpit of the helicopter was illuminated a second time, the helicopter pilot and flight observer directed ground units to Newton's location. A class 3B laser, which emits a green-colored, high-intensity beam of laser light, was found approximately 100 yards from where Newton was stopped and eventually arrested by OCSO deputies.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Orange County Sheriff's Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel W. Eckhart.

Florida Cop Books

May 21, 2008 (San Dimas, CA) Police-Writers.com is a website that lists state and local police officers who have written books. Continuing its leadership in criminal justice books the website added 3 police officers from Florida; now listing well over 1000 state and local law enforcement officials who have authored books.

Thomas Brodie is retired from Metro Dade Police Department (Florida) at the rank of captain. Thomas Brodie law enforcement career included more than twenty-four years as a founder of the Miami Bomb squad and supervisor of its crime scene unit. Over the course of his career, Captain Thomas Brodie investigated approximately 350 bombings and assisted in the disposal of over 4000 bombs and tons of explosives. He is a charter member of the International Association of Bomb Technicians and Investigators and among other awards and honors, he was knighted by the Queen Elizabeth II for his role in protecting the British Empire in the Caribbean. Thomas Brodie is the author of Bombs and Bombings: A Handbook to Protection, Security, Detection, Disposal and Investigation for Industry, Police and Fire Departments.

According to the book description of Bombs and Bombings: A Handbook to Protection, Security, Detection, Disposal and Investigation for Industry, Police and Fire Departments, “This expanded new edition provides law enforcement personnel, firefighters, and security professionals with the most up-to-date information and procedures on the investigation, detection, and disposal of dangerous bombs and explosives and the evidence obtained from them.”

Henry Holden is the author of numerous adult and children books as well as more than 600 magazine articles on Aviation History. In 1994, he rece3ived the New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Author’s Award. Henry Holden was a deputy sheriff for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department (Florida) from 1979 to 1981. He is the author of 31 books such as: To Be a U.S. Air Force Pilot; FBI 100 Years: An Unofficial History; Rescue Helicopters and Aircraft; Hovering: The History of the Whirly-Girls: International Women Helicopter Pilots; To Be a Crime Scene Investigator; American Women of Flight: Pilots and Pioneers; and Crime-Fighting Aircraft.

According to the book description of FBI 100 Years: An Unofficial History, “On the eve of the FBI's centenary, this book offers the first comprehensive illustrated account of the Bureaus 100-year history. Granted unprecedented access to the FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., and academy at Quantico, Virginia, author Henry Holden presents a rare inside view of the agency’s workings, as well as a compelling, closely observed picture of its ever-changing role, powers, notable cases, and controversies through the years.

After three years in the US Marines, the Leigh McEachern became a rookie cop with the St. Petersburg Police Department. Promoted to detective, he took part in many notable cases, including the conviction of the vice-mayor, a prominent defense attorney, on a federal felony. He went on to serve as deputy chief of the Winter Park Police Department, and then as chief deputy of the Orange County Sheriff's Department (Florida). Leigh McEachern is the author of The Appearance of Justice.

Police-Writers.com now hosts 1011 police officers (representing 423 police departments) and their 2152 criminal justice books in 33 categories, there are also listings of United States federal law enforcement employees turned authors, international police officers who have written books and civilian police personnel who have written books.