BLINDER OF PILOT FACES JAIL

Man Shone Flashlight at Black Hawk Border-Patrol Helicopter

Many in a small Washington town bordering Abbotsford will be praying
today that the deacon who wielded a beacon to chase away "overzealous"
border-patrol agents in low-flying Black Hawk choppers doesn't get
sent to jail.

Wayne Groen, 42, of Lynden will be sentenced in U.S. District Court in
Seattle this afternoon, after a jury convicted him of temporarily
blinding a U.S. border-patrol helicopter pilot in September 2010 with
a powerful hand-held flashlight. The crime is a felony with a maximum
penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 US fine.

According to court documents, Groen -- a father of four, church deacon
and owner of a successful manure-hauling business -- was jarred from
sleep after a "large, military-grade" Black Hawk chopper "roared" over
his home, waking his family and sending belongings on shelves smashing
to the floor.

"Where is that big light? That should chase them off," said Groen,
according to his wife, Nicki, before dashing out to his shop only
wearing his underwear and flashing his light at the chopper.

The pilots, who were wearing night-vision goggles that intensified the
beam from Groen's light, were forced to retreat, aborting a border
crossing "interdiction" and headed into the airspace near Abbotsford
airport. The case spotlights the "conflict that had developed over a
number of years between many northern border residents and the U.S.
Border Patrol," which has "tremendously" increased its presence
recently, said Groen's lawyer, Jeffrey Lustick.

Supporters from Lynden submitted more than 100 letters pleading for
leniency for Groen, with many suggesting that he was wrong to wield
his flashlight in frustration, but the vexatious Black Hawk choppers
that have ruined crops and scared animals have disappeared since Groen
made his stand. Robert Woodyard, Groen's pastor, wrote: "Wayne Groen
is a family man, a business man, a church member and a responsible
citizen. He's also a man's man and, when pushed into a corner and
pushed too hard, he pushes back."

Phil Bratt, a local businessman, wrote: "Since the addition of the
Black Hawk helicopters a few years back, we have had times of constant
rumbling noise from these loud aircraft. It has got to the point where
those of us living in this area have become more intruded upon by
these federal officials than by those foreign intruders that they are
charged with protecting us from."

Lustick says Groen should be sentenced to a year's probation and a
$5,000 fine.

But prosecutors -- who have asked for a 10-month jail sentence -- say
Groen is not a local hero, but a man who is "hostile, belligerent and
actually enjoys harassing law enforcement."