Judge Supports Man Who Shot Down Drone

Drones are a hot topic, with both laws and companies trying to catch up on an evolving and increasingly more accessible market for the public. Back in August we posted about William Meredith, a resident in the USA, who after spotting a drone flying above his property, was prompted to shoot it down.

Meredith cited his right to privacy, stating that the drone was flying above his property on an afternoon while his daughters were in the back garden playing. It would appear that the Judge, deciding on Monday that the drone did, in fact, invade his privacy, giving him a right to shoot it. The judge made this decision given the two witnesses who testified that the UAV flew below the tree line of Meredith’s property.

The drone pilot and owner, David Boggs, is less than happy with this decision, stating that the Judge completely ignored video footage of the drone flying 200 feet above the ground. Aside from this drama Meredith states that his neighbours saw the drone making several flights over his land, explaining that the video could have come from a different flight and cannot be used to prove that it was the only flight or that all of them took the same pattern.

With the law trying to catch up with technology, instances like this may soon refer to this case a president for what to do when people take action to prevent drones on their property. We do not recommend though that you start using anti-drone weaponry on anything that flies near your house.