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Guy shoots at chopper...oh boy!
- Thread starter Navy joe
- Start date
Merged? Mangled is more like it! 
Like that would be difficult?
<sigh> At least he didn't:
Like that would be difficult?
<sigh> At least he didn't:
- Hit someone.
- Down the chopper.
- Use a .50 cal. Wouldn't VPC have loved that?
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Any bets on the chopper jock keeping his license?
At least he'll get an award for the thinnest excuse ever offered for an illegal landing.
Chief Jones
New member
That kinda junk happens around military reservations as well. Some people think that those guys out there training to defend the country are actually a bunch of jerk-offs scattering the livestock, destroying crops, peeking in windows, etc.... In reality there are so many "Fly Friendly" rules that very little of this happens and offenders are dealt with severely.
Woody Jones,
CW4, USA retired
Woody Jones,
CW4, USA retired
Malone LaVeigh
New member
Hey, what's wrong? This guy is a natural candidate for TIPS.
Reminds me of the 60ish overweight fellow in front of me at the gun show last year, buying a box of .38 spl for "the war we're getting into."
Reminds me of the 60ish overweight fellow in front of me at the gun show last year, buying a box of .38 spl for "the war we're getting into."
Nanaimo Barr
New member
why was he landing a copter there? I do believe that is a violation of FCC regs (and probably lots of anti terror acts if they want to make the effort)
if he had a mechanical problem, why did he take off again?
if he had a mechanical problem, why did he take off again?
Nanaimo Barr
New member
arn't they both part of Homeland Security now? (snicker), yes. I ment FAA
Apple a Day
New member
I thought this sounded fishy
http://dailypress.com/news/local/williamsburg/dp-28939sy0jul23.story?coll=dp-news-local-wbg
This story sounded a little too wierd. Here's the followup
Lawyer: Copter shooting may be fiction
By Brian Whitson
Daily Press
Published July 23, 2002
JAMES CITY -- John Chwaszczewski stands by his story that he fired an assault-style rifle July 13 at a helicopter that landed unexpectedly in a vacant lot across the street from his James City County house.
But his lawyer says the shooting might have never happened.
"His story has not changed at all - at least in his own mind," said Pat Kelley, a Williamsburg lawyer representing Chwaszczewski. "I have serious reservations to whether he ever fired a gun."
He added, "I think he probably has some mental-health issues."
Williamsburg-James City County Commonwealth's Attorney Mike McGinty said Monday that he had talked to Kelley and he is looking into that possibility.
Chwaszczewski was charged Thursday after he told police that he fired two shots from an AR-15 toward a helicopter that picked up a man in a business suit who appeared from behind a tree. He said the helicopter almost hit his car and house, and he thought the men were terrorists.
This comes from a man whose permanent residence is in New Jersey and who says he witnessed the World Trade Center attack.
"Maybe I overreacted," Chwaszczewski said last week, "but I did feel this was terrorism at its utmost."
The passenger turned out to be a neighbor, John Peters, who lives on Monument Drive - one street away from Chwaszczewski's house on Magruder Lane. The pilot was John S. Sutton, who lives in the 300 block of Indian Springs Road in Williamsburg.
Chwaszczewski said he cut up the rifle with a saw shortly after the incident and threw it away.
When reached at home Monday and asked about the new version of the story that has him never firing a gun, Chwaszczewski responded, "That's cool. It gets me off the hook."
When asked if he still stood by his story that he fired the rifle at the two-passenger helicopter, he responded that he did but then referred all questions to his attorney.
Kelley said his client probably still believes he fired the rifle.
The lawyer said he believes his client has recently developed some mental-health issues. He said he has spoken to several people who have known Chwaszczewski for a long time who have said that over the last eight or nine months Chwaszczewski has talked about committing other crimes that never occurred.
Kelley would not elaborate on what types of crimes.
"It's not unusual for people to confess to things they didn't do," Kelley said.
"I'm not saying it didn't happen, but I'm saying that in my investigation to this point, I have serious reservations that John fired off a weapon.
"At this point, they have absolutely no witnesses or evidence he ever fired a gun," Kelley added.
James City police acknowledge the main evidence against Chwaszczewski is his own statement.
But prosecutors said last week that the statement gained credence when police determined the helicopter landing occurred where and when Chwaszczewski said it did.
Deputy Police Chief Ken Middlebrook said Monday that police did not find any bullet holes in the helicopter nor any shell casings or pieces of the gun.
Up until Friday, Middlebrook acknowledged, police had not found anyone who actually heard the shots.
But he said a neighbor told a TV news broadcast Friday evening that he heard someone fire a gun, and investigators were planning to follow that lead.
Middlebrook confirmed that Chwaszczewski never told officers about firing a weapon when he first called police to report the incident.
Middlebrook said police returned to question him after Chwaszczewski told a local newspaper about shooting twice at the helicopter. That's when he confessed to police.
Middlebrook said they'd check into any mental-health issues.
"We're still investigating," he said.
Sutton - who has said he didn't realize someone might have shot at the helicopter until reading it in a local newspaper - has been charged with recklessly operating an aircraft, a misdemeanor.
Chwaszczewski, a semi-retired construction worker who lives in Port Monmouth, N.J., most of the year, was charged with interfering with an aircraft, discharging a firearm in a public place, reckless handling of a firearm and assaulting Sutton.
The felony and three misdemeanors could land him in prison for up to eight years, along with a potential $10,000 in fines.
Brian Whitson can be reached at 221-7220 or by e-mail at bwhitson@dailypress.com
http://dailypress.com/news/local/williamsburg/dp-28939sy0jul23.story?coll=dp-news-local-wbg
This story sounded a little too wierd. Here's the followup
Lawyer: Copter shooting may be fiction
By Brian Whitson
Daily Press
Published July 23, 2002
JAMES CITY -- John Chwaszczewski stands by his story that he fired an assault-style rifle July 13 at a helicopter that landed unexpectedly in a vacant lot across the street from his James City County house.
But his lawyer says the shooting might have never happened.
"His story has not changed at all - at least in his own mind," said Pat Kelley, a Williamsburg lawyer representing Chwaszczewski. "I have serious reservations to whether he ever fired a gun."
He added, "I think he probably has some mental-health issues."
Williamsburg-James City County Commonwealth's Attorney Mike McGinty said Monday that he had talked to Kelley and he is looking into that possibility.
Chwaszczewski was charged Thursday after he told police that he fired two shots from an AR-15 toward a helicopter that picked up a man in a business suit who appeared from behind a tree. He said the helicopter almost hit his car and house, and he thought the men were terrorists.
This comes from a man whose permanent residence is in New Jersey and who says he witnessed the World Trade Center attack.
"Maybe I overreacted," Chwaszczewski said last week, "but I did feel this was terrorism at its utmost."
The passenger turned out to be a neighbor, John Peters, who lives on Monument Drive - one street away from Chwaszczewski's house on Magruder Lane. The pilot was John S. Sutton, who lives in the 300 block of Indian Springs Road in Williamsburg.
Chwaszczewski said he cut up the rifle with a saw shortly after the incident and threw it away.
When reached at home Monday and asked about the new version of the story that has him never firing a gun, Chwaszczewski responded, "That's cool. It gets me off the hook."
When asked if he still stood by his story that he fired the rifle at the two-passenger helicopter, he responded that he did but then referred all questions to his attorney.
Kelley said his client probably still believes he fired the rifle.
The lawyer said he believes his client has recently developed some mental-health issues. He said he has spoken to several people who have known Chwaszczewski for a long time who have said that over the last eight or nine months Chwaszczewski has talked about committing other crimes that never occurred.
Kelley would not elaborate on what types of crimes.
"It's not unusual for people to confess to things they didn't do," Kelley said.
"I'm not saying it didn't happen, but I'm saying that in my investigation to this point, I have serious reservations that John fired off a weapon.
"At this point, they have absolutely no witnesses or evidence he ever fired a gun," Kelley added.
James City police acknowledge the main evidence against Chwaszczewski is his own statement.
But prosecutors said last week that the statement gained credence when police determined the helicopter landing occurred where and when Chwaszczewski said it did.
Deputy Police Chief Ken Middlebrook said Monday that police did not find any bullet holes in the helicopter nor any shell casings or pieces of the gun.
Up until Friday, Middlebrook acknowledged, police had not found anyone who actually heard the shots.
But he said a neighbor told a TV news broadcast Friday evening that he heard someone fire a gun, and investigators were planning to follow that lead.
Middlebrook confirmed that Chwaszczewski never told officers about firing a weapon when he first called police to report the incident.
Middlebrook said police returned to question him after Chwaszczewski told a local newspaper about shooting twice at the helicopter. That's when he confessed to police.
Middlebrook said they'd check into any mental-health issues.
"We're still investigating," he said.
Sutton - who has said he didn't realize someone might have shot at the helicopter until reading it in a local newspaper - has been charged with recklessly operating an aircraft, a misdemeanor.
Chwaszczewski, a semi-retired construction worker who lives in Port Monmouth, N.J., most of the year, was charged with interfering with an aircraft, discharging a firearm in a public place, reckless handling of a firearm and assaulting Sutton.
The felony and three misdemeanors could land him in prison for up to eight years, along with a potential $10,000 in fines.
Brian Whitson can be reached at 221-7220 or by e-mail at bwhitson@dailypress.com
After just seeing that article (saying he may have imagined the shooting), I'm not sure what's going on. The issue isn't whether he's mentally ill. The problem I have is that the case is being handled by a bunch of bumbling idiots. What on earth are those cops doing? They don't check him for residue, don't check the rifle to verify it was fired, apparently don't care that they're unable to recover bullets or casings, and don't care that the people who were shot at didn't hear anything. And now a neighbor claims there was gunfire? Something's just not right.
Apple a Day
New member
You'd think if the guy actually sawed an AR-15 [Aaaaagh, the HORROR!!!] then the cops could still sweep up some of the cuttings and do a chemical analysis to compare with the type of alloy used for the reciever of the rifle. No residue, no sawing, no rifle, no foul. Even if he supposedly cleaned up there would still be some residue on the reciprocating saw/ in the saw casing.
ballistic gelatin
New member
No whistle no foul. The guy was probably just bragging to his neighbor about how he killed a 2000 lb. black bear last weekend with a .22
Send the guy home.
Send the guy home.