Aaron Jason Cope, of Norfolk, Va., was sentenced this morning in U.S. District Court in Denver to six months in federal prison for operating an aircraft under the influence of alcohol.
Cope, 33, also will serve six months of home detention after completing the prison sentence imposed by Judge John R. Tunheim.
The judge ordered Cope to spend the first three months of home detention under electronic monitoring. Cope was also sentenced to serve two years on supervised release.
Cope was ordered to report to a facility designated by the U.S. Bureau of Prisons by Jan. 3.
He was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on March 16, and was convicted of the operation of an aircraft under the influence of alcohol following a two-day bench trial which started on June 6.
On Dec. 8, 2009, Cope was the co-pilot on United Express flight 7687, a flight operated by Shuttle America, from Austin, Texas, to Denver.
The flight’s captain, Robert Obodzinski, testified that Cope appeared to be thinking and speaking clearly during the flight, though there was an unusual odor.
Upon arriving at the gate at Denver International Airport, Obodzinski said he leaned over and “took a big wiff,” and concluded the smell of an alcoholic beverage was emanating from Cope.
Cope took breathalyzer test at DIA that showed his blood alcohol level was .094.
Ann Schrader: 303-954-1967 or aschrader@denverpost.com.
