A federal employee who crashed a drone onto the White House lawn will not face charges, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Shawn Usman, 31, an employee of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, was piloting a small drone in the early hours of Jan. 26 when he accidentally crashed it onto the White House lawn, triggering a security lockdown and prompting a Secret Service investigation.
Mr. Usman told officials he was the drone controller and lawyers said he has fully cooperated during the investigation.
“This entire incident, while unfortunate and understandably alarming, was totally inadvertent and completely unintentional,” said Mr. Usman’s lawyer, James Garland, in a statement.
“Mr. Usman wishes to express his sincere apologies to all those affected, especially to the president and his family, as well as to those responsible for ensuring their safety,” Mr. Garland said.
Ronald Machen, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, said his office decided not to press any charges but that the Federal Aviation Administration was reviewing the case.
The FAA could still charge Mr. Usman a $1,000 fine for flying a drone in restricted airspace.
Though Secret Service agents located the drone quickly, it drew attention to the White House’s vulnerability to unmanned and remote control aircraft that are sometimes no more than a foot wide and getting smaller by the day.
Since Sept. 11, 2001, the executive mansion’s defenses have been designed around stopping a large aircraft like a plane or a helicopter. But the Secret Service said they are working to develop defenses against drones, including devices that could knock out a drone’s electronic systems.
• Phillip Swarts can be reached at pswarts@washingtontimes.com.
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