WASHINGTON (AP) — A man who piloted a one-person gyrocopter through some of the most restricted U.S. airspace and landed on the lawn of the Capitol in Washington is scheduled to be sentenced.
Florida resident Douglas Hughes is expected to be sentenced today. Hughes has said his April 15, 2015, flight in the bare-bones aircraft was a way to call attention to the influence of big money in politics.
Hughes pleaded guilty in November to a felony of operating a gyrocopter without a license.
Prosecutors are asking for 10 months in prison, arguing that the former mail carrier from Ruskin, Florida, put countless lives at risk. Hughes’ attorneys say he should be allowed to remain out of jail.
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