# Bright flashlights and the LAW! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 3, 2011, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352 "2011-08-03T19:11:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Diamonds02](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Diamonds02](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diamonds02)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/1 "2011-08-03T19:11:34Z")
I have a 69 lumen flashlight. It works okay. I have a night job, and I use it illuminate dark spots where bad guys might be hiding. I’m looking into purchasing a 200 lumen flashlight. I heard this is flat out blinding to people. Which can be a good thing or a bad thing. Good if I can blind a bad guy long enough for me to get away or spray him with pepper spray…bad if I piss off residents by accidentally shining it in their houses/apartments/cars. I no doubt skeeved out two teenage girls last night sitting on their porch, when I drove by shining lights into dark carports and spaces between townhouses (I didn’t see them at first, of course). I’m wondering if there could be any possible legal issues with me using bright flashlights and not being a cop. Any other potential dangers I can get into? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/2 "2011-08-03T19:13:57Z")
I have a 900 lumen LED flashlight. I’ve never thought once about the legal status of using it when I walk my dogs, and I’ve never heard of any law restricting the brightness of a flashlight. Now, Lasers are a different story… ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/3 "2011-08-03T19:34:49Z")
I know of no Federal or Ohio law restricting the brightness of flashlights. You have the same duty of care of any citizen not to blind, even temporarily, other people, and of course you shouldn’t be using it around airports where you might blind a pilot with disastrous results. ---
**Author:** ![GaryM](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garym/32/241_2.png) [@GaryM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GaryM)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/4 "2011-08-03T22:11:44Z")
Get one of these [Maelstrom S18](http://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=297_406&products_id=2655) , 1200 Lumens on High. My doggie flashlight is 700 lumens out the front and is plenty bright. Not too tight a beam either. I have a 500 with a tight beam that looks brighter than the 700, but because the beams a lot narrower it’s not as good for my uses. ---
**Author:** ![Al\_Bundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@Al\_Bundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Al_Bundy)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2011, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/5 "2011-08-03T23:14:52Z")
There are larger lumen sources than yours. You are OK for the purpose intended. However, I must caution that if you pissed the police off and were ever shining it at them, they would accuse you of something, obstructing or whatever. The wrong stranger would take your ‘shining’ as “fighting words” so to speak too. ---
**Author:** ![awldune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@awldune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/awldune)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/6 "2011-08-04T14:42:08Z")
HID headlamps make 3000 lumens and those are legal, so I can’t imagine that 200 lumens would be a problem. > [@Diamonds02](#): > > I drove by shining lights into dark carports and spaces between townhouses Out of curiosity, are you some sort of vigilante? Police will likely hassle you if they see you doing this. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/7 "2011-08-04T14:52:33Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > I know of no Federal or Ohio law restricting the brightness of flashlights. You have the same duty of care of any citizen not to blind, even temporarily, other people, and of course you shouldn’t be using it around airports where you might blind a pilot with disastrous results. Note that blinding a pilot can be [charged](http://articles.cnn.com/2011-07-30/entertainment/california.gable.grandson_1_clark-gable-laser-light-police-helicopter?_s=PM:SHOWBIZ) as a crime. (If the pilot’s in the air at the time, of course). ---
**Author:** ![Diamonds02](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Diamonds02](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diamonds02)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/8 "2011-08-04T14:56:55Z")
> [@awldune](#): > > HID headlamps make 3000 lumens and those are legal, so I can’t imagine that 200 lumens would be a problem. > > Out of curiosity, are you some sort of vigilante? Police will likely hassle you if they see you doing this. Yeah, I am taking this into consideration. No, I am not vigilante, lol. A deliverer. I’m also a small woman, there’s no way I could defend myself if someone gets hold of me. I compensate by practicing strict situational awareness. I shine my light into any dark area, either before I get out of my car or right after my car, to make sure no one is hiding. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/9 "2011-08-04T15:01:46Z")
Often the brighter flashlights use lithium batteries. You probably can’t pack a flashlight with a lithium battery into your checked baggage for US air travel, and instead must transport it as carry-on [http://safetravel.dot.gov/whats\_new\_batteries.html](http://safetravel.dot.gov/whats_new_batteries.html) . You’re on your own when it comes to explaining to a sock sniffing TSA drone why the flashlight that you are trying to sneak on board under your coat is not a terrorist weapon that will be used to blind the pilot. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/10 "2011-08-04T15:08:06Z")
Every case I’ve seen of blinding a pilot in the air involve a laser, not a standard flashlight. It’s very unlikely that a handheld flashlight could be bright enough to blind a pilot in the air. Inverse square law and all that. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Falling\_Reverend](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/aca169/32.png) [@The\_Falling\_Reverend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Falling_Reverend)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/11 "2011-08-04T15:27:17Z")
You might want to be careful about shining a flashlight from your car at night. The security company that works at my apartment complex got a talking to from the police when they were shining dark spots from an unmarked personal vehicle. People were calling it in as a suspicious vehicle and the cops rolled up thinking it was someone casing condos for a future break in. Good times. ---
**Author:** ![Diamonds02](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Diamonds02](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diamonds02)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/12 "2011-08-04T15:43:58Z")
Wow, there are people who are dumb enough to case with a flashlight, making their presence known? I weep. ---
**Author:** ![paperbackwriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@paperbackwriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/paperbackwriter)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/13 "2011-08-04T17:26:06Z")
Considering that there are people dumb enough to use [lemon juice as an attempt to disguise their features on CCTV](http://mindhacks.com/2010/02/11/the-burglar-with-the-lemon-juice-disguise/), I wouldn’t be at all surprised at an idiot casing a street with flashlights. ---
**Author:** ![Hbns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hbns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hbns)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/14 "2011-08-04T18:50:42Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > You probably can’t pack a flashlight with a lithium battery into your checked baggage for US air travel, and instead must transport it as carry-on [http://safetravel.dot.gov/whats\_new\_batteries.html](http://safetravel.dot.gov/whats_new_batteries.html) . :eek: In the past year I traveled on 8 international and a dozen domestic flights with lithium cells in my checked baggage. :eek: Wasn’t aware there was a regulation, and clearly they aren’t checking for them. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/15 "2011-08-04T19:12:36Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > Every case I’ve seen of blinding a pilot in the air involve a laser, not a standard flashlight. It’s very unlikely that a handheld flashlight could be bright enough to blind a pilot in the air. Inverse square law and all that. The trick is to club the flight attendant with it, use it to smash into the cockpit, and hold it right up close into the pilot’s eye. > [@Hbns](#): > > :eek: In the past year I traveled on 8 international and a dozen domestic flights with lithium cells in my checked baggage. :eek: > Wasn’t aware there was a regulation, and clearly they aren’t checking for them. :dubious: That’s what all the terrorists say. You’re on the list now. ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/16 "2011-08-04T20:53:55Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > The trick is to club the flight attendant with it, use it to smash into the cockpit, and hold it right up close into the pilot’s eye. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of those Maglites really could smash down a reinforced cockpit door… ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/17 "2011-08-04T20:55:08Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > You’re on your own when it comes to explaining to a sock sniffing TSA drone why the flashlight that you are trying to sneak on board under your coat is not a terrorist weapon that will be used to blind the pilot. “I’m just happy to see you.” ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2011, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/18 "2011-08-04T21:57:42Z")
To the OP have you considered a night vision scope or even a thermal imager? This way you could see without lighting up the neighborhood. > [@Hbns](#): > > :eek: In the past year I traveled on 8 international and a dozen domestic flights with lithium cells in my checked baggage. :eek: > Wasn’t aware there was a regulation, and clearly they aren’t checking for them. :dubious: That link clearly says **spare** lithium batteries and it appears that lithium batteries that are in devices are OK, which makes sense as laptops and cellphones all have lithium batteries now. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2011, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/19 "2011-08-05T05:21:25Z")
> [@kanicbird](#): > > That link clearly says **spare** lithium batteries and it appears that lithium batteries that are in devices are OK, which makes sense as laptops and cellphones all have lithium batteries now. So much for my reading comprehension. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![toofs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@toofs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toofs)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2011, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352/20 "2011-08-05T05:32:33Z")
Seconding the 4sevens lights. I have owned 5 of them, and given many as gifts. They are excellent in design, manufacture, and real world performance. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bright-flashlights-and-the-law/591352.md?page=2)