Pilot Doug Hughes Indicted: Faces Jail Time For Protest Flight To Capitol
A federal grand jury has indicted postal worker and pilot Doug Hughes after he flew a gyrocopter through the most restricted airspace in the U.S. He faces up to nine and a half years in prison, but a court trial might get more attention to his cause.
Doug Hughes is a 61-year-old Florida mail carrier who flew a gyrocopter through three no-fly zones and landed on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol on April 15. Even though the pilot made his intentions known – he wrote about his “Freedom Flight” since September, 2013 – he caught security forces completely off guard.
Luckily, his mission was nonviolent.
Doug Hughes was there to deliver 535 letters, one for each voting member of Congress, to protest campaign finance laws and advocate for change.
According to Washington Post, Hughes explained to reporters that the constitution called for a traditional marriage between the government and the people, but that’s changed.
“Over time, the Congress, our Congress, has rewritten the rules to define an open marriage: They’re in bed with lobbyists, special interests, Wall Street and big banks.”
He added, “As long as I am free, I am going to keep introducing voters to solutions to the problems of corruption that the vast majority of voters recognize and oppose.”
The act of civil disobedience earned Hughes an indictment from a grand jury on Wednesday, one that he’ll fight in the courts.
NBC News reports that Doug Hughes was charged for two felonies – flying without correct certification and failing to register the aircraft – and four misdemeanors – violating national airspace and falsely labeling the aircraft as a mail carrier.
The pilot did manage to spark heated debate on the Hill, not about campaign finance reform, but about security. Hughes managed to travel miles into the prohibited Area 56A airspace surrounding the White House seemingly undetected by the Secret Service, FBI, FAA, D.C. police and others. To add insult to injury, he explicitly described his plan to the Tampa Bay Times.
Despite the security flaws taking a lot of the spotlight, the pilot has earned some supporters for his actual cause.
Public Citizen, a citizens’ interest group, presented the pilot with an extra large-sized stamp to honor his flight to the capitol.
Likewise, Greenpeace came forward to praise Hughes in a statement.
“Doug Hughes’ courageous and compelling nonviolent direct action struck a chord and his message has reverberated across the country.”
The pilot admits that he is worried about jail time, but he also said, “this is going to play out in the courts, and it may finish up before a jury of my peers.”
Hughes explained, “the purpose of my civil disobedience was to get Congress and the federal government to work for the people instead of special interests, and to draw attention to my website and to solutions that already exist.”
Now that he’s been indicted, a court trial might serve as another opportunity for pilot Doug Hughes to draw attention to campaign finance reform.
[Image Credit: Getty Images]
