The case against the Kentucky man who shot down a drone flying over his property has been dismissed by a US District Court, citing “lack of subject matter jurisdiction.”
In July of 2015, William Meredith of KY shot down a drone belonging to David Boggs as it flew over his property. While Meredith was subsequently arrested on a criminal mischief charge, local judge Rebecca Ward dismissed the charges against him, saying that the drone did indeed represent “an invasion of their privacy,” and that Meredith “had the right to shoot” the drone.
Meredith was quick to capitalize on the ruling, dubbing himself “the droneslayer” and introducing droneslayer t-shirts for sale. Boggs, however, stunned over the dismissal and recognizing a potentially dangerous precedent, decided to appeal the case. While the drone industry awaited a potentially significant ruling – one that would clearly establish who ultimately owns the sky – Meredith asked for the case to be dismissed, with his lawyers arguing that the case’s important was exaggerated:
The Plaintiff, in response to the criminal charges being dismissed against the Defendant, is using the declaratory remedy to attempt to create subject matter jurisdiction – the proverbial mountain out of a molehill. A careful reading of the Complaint reveals the argument to be as follows: The Defendent damaged the Plaintiff’s drone….In reality, this is a Bullitt County small claims court case.
Miriam McNabb is the Editor-in-Chief of DRONELIFE and CEO of JobForDrones, a professional drone services marketplace, and a fascinated observer of the emerging drone industry and the regulatory environment for drones. Miriam has penned over 3,000 articles focused on the commercial drone space and is an international speaker and recognized figure in the industry. Miriam has a degree from the University of Chicago and over 20 years of experience in high tech sales and marketing for new technologies.
For drone industry consulting or writing, Email Miriam.
TWITTER:@spaldingbarker
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This is BS. The FAA clearly states what this shooter did was illegal. The judge was wrong with his decision and I hope the drone operator appeals.
Too Bad, So Sad!!
Too bad for you. What you don’t know is, you don’t own the airspace above your property so flying over it isn’t illegal.
This is a Bullshit decision that stinks of Kentucky Bluegrass Manure. The red-neck Hee-Haw shoot ’em up Trump Supporters are cackling now, but they are helping to kill a technological revolution. Back to the storage we go. Hope you mouth-breathers are happy. It doesn’t take much with stupid people.
Look who’s calling who “Stupid”???