SANTA ANA – A 35-year-old Santa Ana man was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison on Monday for shining a laser pointer at an Orange County Sheriff’s Department helicopter.

Mario Deleon Lopez pleaded guilty in March to aiming the laser pointer at deputies flying over a traffic accident in Santa Ana on Nov. 14.

After the green laser illuminated the helicopter’s cockpit multiple times, the flight crew was able to direct officers on the ground to a backyard in Santa Ana. Lopez was arrested, released and later indicted.

Authorities are fighting a growing problem with the new technology, with laser strikes on aircraft having increased dramatically as the devices have become more available, affordable and powerful.

Prosecutors had asked for a 15-month sentence for Lopez, noting his convictions of burglary, forgery, possession of a controlled substance, evading a police officer and reckless driving, court documents say.

Lopez “admitted that he read the warning label on the laser and that he knew pointing the laser at someone could cause blindness,” the documents say, and that he knew “lasers could cause danger to an aircraft, but was not aware of a laser causing one to crash.”

The helicopter pilot stated that Lopez was “trying pretty hard to get us,” with the tactical officer saying that he suffered a headache afterward.

Lopez’s attorney, Deputy Federal Public Defender Jesse Gessin, had asked for a one-year sentence, noting Lopez’s long struggle with drug addiction and need for treatment. Lopez, he said, does recognize the seriousness of his crime.

U.S. Attorney Eileen M. Decker said the case highlights the seriousness of people shining lasers at aircraft.

“Had the pilot lost control of the helicopter, lives could have been lost,” she said in a statement. “Consequently, we take these cases very seriously and will continue to prosecute those who commit this crime.”

Contact the writer: kpuente@ocregister.com