An individual who placed a laser jamming device in his work van to elude speeding fines has been given a suspended prison sentence, fined £3000, and placed under curfew for two months.

Jason Moore was found guilty of perverting the course of justice by a jury at Swansea Crown Court for installing a Laser Star jamming device on a VW Transporter van to hinder a laser speed camera operator from Dyfed-Powys Police in determining the speed of the vehicle.

In September 2018, James Hartson, acting as the prosecutor, relayed to the court that the van was seen speeding as it approached the speed camera near Nantyci Showground on the A40, St Clears, near Camarthen.

An error message was displayed on the device as the camera operator tried to measure the vehicle's speed. Despite this setback, the operator had been instructed by Road Safety Support specialists to recognize the specific conditions that could result in the display of this error message.

As part of Road Safety Support, Dyfed-Powys Police engaged the services of Steve Callaghan, a specialist in forensic video analysis and laser jamming, who works for the company.

The video was forwarded to Mr. Callaghan, who verified the presence of a suspect device in the footage. He also observed that the laser jammers was flashing light from the van's grille as error messages were displayed by the laser speedmeter.

The van was recovered for testing and evidence retrieval after Mr. Callaghan's initial examination and advice to Dyfed-Powys Police.

A comprehensive examination report was compiled, outlining the findings and circumstances of the incident, where the speed reading was unattainable. Road Safety Support determined that the van was traveling at a speed of 72 mph, surpassing its maximum permitted speed of 60 mph.

The assertion made by Mr. Moore was that he did not realize the Laser Star jamming system could interfere with the speed measurement function of a police speedmeter. He stated that he had purchased the device solely for its parking sensor function.

David Winstanley, a retired police collision investigator, was appointed by Mr. Moore based on his asserted expertise in laser and video systems to act as his expert witness.

Mr. Winstanley was insistent that the Laser Star be marketed as a 'parking sensor' and not be labeled primarily as a laser jamming device.

In his reply, Mr. Callaghan articulated that employing a laser beam for detecting parking obstructions was entirely inappropriate and largely ineffective. He elaborated that a parking sensor does not require programming to interfere with a laser speedmeter. Additionally, the Laser Star is marketed as having the capability to disrupt speed cameras in its instructions and promotional materials, a function that is not typical of a parking sensor.

Moreover, Mr. Moore emphasized in his statement that the security company he worked for required employees to pay for any damage caused to work vehicles. He argued that he installed the device to minimize the risk of damage.

Following a jury's decision, Moore was found guilty and sentenced at Swansea Crown Court on October 18, 2021.

Judge Vosper QC characterized Moore's defense as lacking in validity, noting his lack of surprise at the jury's rejection of it.

A suspended custodial sentence of 32 weeks has been imposed on Moore, to be served over a period of 2 years. Moreover, he has been ordered to pay a total of £3,000 in costs and fines, and a curfew lasting two months has been enforced.

Can police tell if you have a laser jammer?

When the police utilize a lidar gun to target a vehicle, they may receive an error message of either "no response" or cosine error. In such instances, the police officers are unable to ascertain whether the vehicle is equipped with a laser signal jammers or if they have simply failed to accurately aim at the vehicle. This situation provides the driver with a window of time to modify their speed before the police can reexamine the data.

Since police need to be stationary and able to see a vehicle at close range without cover for lidar to work properly, if police receive a false response the first time they fire their lidar gun, the targeted driver will likely have time to adjust his speed when out of range. Lidar is most often used by motorcycle police or identifiable patrol cars, who use it most effectively on major roads, which limits when and where they can be used. In the case of heavy traffic, the police lidar gun is very effective at focusing on the vehicle and instantly calculating its speed, distance and direction.