In a landmark case for aerial photography health and safety, a Seattle drone pilot was found guilty of reckless endangerment on Friday. The man was sentenced to 30 days in jail as well as a US$500 fine.

The Seattle Times reports that this is the first time that Seattle’s City Attorney office has charged someone with an offence of this type

Paul M. Skinner, 38, had been piloting his drone during the Seattle Pride Parade in 2015 when he lost control of the device, slamming it into attendees. Two people were injured in the event, including a woman who was knocked unconscious by the collision.

Though the verdict recognised that the incident was unintentional, Seattle Municipal Court Willie Gregory has stated that the penalty reflects that Skinner “. . . engaged in conduct that put people in danger of being injured, which is what happened. ”However, Skinner’s attorney Jeffrey Kradel (who is appealing the verdict) has stated that he believes that the sentencing was “too severe” and that the case was being used as a scare tactic against other potentially reckless drone pilots. Skinner had previously been convicted of the crime by a jury last month.

Though the exact model is unknown, according to police, the US$1,200 drone hit the woman in question on the head at the 2015 event, after crashing into a building and plummeting into the crowd below. She received a concussion from the hit, while a fellow bystander suffered bruises.

Recently another pilot crashed a drone into Seattle's iconic Space Needle

This is not the only such case of injuries sustained by drone activity at large public events. In 2016, in a similar incident a drone pilot in Canada knocked a woman off her feet with a Phantom III drone during a parade. Some legislators worldwide believe that though these incidents may not be a regular occurrence, they are happening enough to warrant stringent policies in order to safeguard the public.

Seattle’s Assistant City Prosecutor for the Skinner case, Raymond Lee, said at sentencing that locals “should not fear a drone strike falling from the sky. ” According to PDN, the FAA reported that there has been a drastic increase in incidents recently; 1,274 between February and September last year, compared to 874 the year before.

Though some may cheer further air control legislation that will follow proceedings such as these, aerial photographers may be made unhappy. Though it is highly unlikely that piloting laws will become so draconian as those that forced a pilot in Cuba into incarceration for merely flying a UAV, it may become a lot harder for casual users to operate in public spaces. The question of where the line in the name of safety will fall has yet to be determined.

2017-2-28 03:00