Man arrested after police say he pointed laser at APD helicopter

ATLANTA — Atlanta police arrested a man they say pointed a laser at a helicopter during aerial patrol.

On Sunday, while patrolling NW Atlanta and assisting officers with crowd control near J Lo and Fair Street, the Atlanta Police Department’s Air Unit (Phoenix 1) observed a male on the front porch area in the 600 block of Spencer St. NW, pointing a laser towards them repeatedly.

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Laser pointers can prove to be dangerous to aircraft pilots, police said, so the Air Unit team requested a patrol officer back-up to address the situation.

As officers arrived on scene, the Air Unit maintained a visual on the suspect and observed the male retreat into an apartment at the location.

The officers knocked on the door and the suspect exited the home.

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After several minutes of conversation, officers asked the man to produce the laser pointer.

He had someone inside the residence go and bring the item outside for police to examine. Officers recovered the laser pointer which was mounted on a handgun.

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The suspect was identified as Jamal Bard, who was subsequently taken into custody without incident and was charged for pointing the firearm and laser towards the police helicopter in the presence of a young child.

“Thanks to the teamwork between air and ground units, another reckless individual with a gun is off the streets,” police said. “The Atlanta Police Department would like to note that pointing a laser at an aircraft is illegal and can result in serious consequences.”

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