A SHERIFF'S DEPT HELI FORCED AN SMA TO LAND AFTER AN ALLEGED LOW FLT. THERE WAS AN ILLEGAL; UNBRIEFED FORMATION FLT.

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A HELI APCHED MY ACFT FROM THE SE. I WAS ON A HDG OF APPROX 350 IN A SLOW; LEVEL ORBIT AT 1200 FT AGL; OVER AN UNCONGESTED AREA (1/2 MI IN DIAMETER) IN W JACKSONVILLE; FL; TAKING AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS. THE HELI OVERTOOK MY POS AT 1200 FT AGL FROM 1/2 MI OUT ON MY STARBOARD SIDE. HE IMMEDIATELY TURNED NW TO INTERCEPT MY COURSE; FORCING ME TO ALTER MY HDG AND AIRSPD. I CLBED TO 2000 FT MSL AND TRIED TO CONTACT THE HELI ON A MULTICOM CHANNEL; WHICH WAS UNSUCCESSFUL. THERE WERE NO VISIBLE MARKINGS ON THE HELI ABOUT ITS IDENT THAT I COULD CLRLY SEE; LATERAL TO MY VIEW. THE HELI CONTINUED FOR THE NEXT 8-10 MINS TO CUT ME OFF; AND IN 1 INSTANCE; TURNED HEAD-ON DIRECTLY INTO MY FLT PATH. I HAD TO USE EVASIVE ACTION BY MAKING A R TURN AWAY FROM THE APCHING HELI. IT THEN JOINED UP IN LEVEL FLT ON MY PORT SIDE; ABEAM MY VERT STABILIZER. HDG WAS PLUS OR MINUS 090; AIRSPD WAS 110 KTS; ALT WAS APPROX 1800 FT MSL; DISTANCE TO CRAIG VOR WAS PLUS OR MINUS 9 NM. THE HELI MOVED TO WITHIN 150 FT OF MY L HORIZ STABILIZER; ALL THIS OCCURRING WITH NO RADIO COM OR VISUAL HAND SIGNALS ACKNOWLEDGING AN AGREED FORMATION. I RAISED JACKSONVILLE APCH ON 118.00 AND DESCRIBED THE SIT TO THEM AND REQUESTED THAT THEY CONTACT THE HELI AND GET THEM ON A MULTICOM CHANNEL (PLT TO PLT). I SUGGESTED 122.90. DURING MY EXCHANGE WITH JACKSONVILLE APCH; 1 OF THE HELI CREW MEMBERS STEPPED IN ON THE APCH FREQ I WAS ON AND TRIED TO COMMUNICATE WITH ME DIRECTLY (PLT TO PLT). HE CONTINUED TO DO SO FOR 1-2 MINS; STEPPING ON SEVERAL XMISSIONS; INCLUDING A COMMERCIAL CARRIER. AS WE CONTINUED EASTWARD IN AN UNAUTHORIZED FORMATION; THE HELI ASKED THAT I TURN TO 122.80 (UNICOM); WHICH I DID. A CREW MEMBER OF THE HELI THEN BEGAN TO INTERROGATE ME ABOUT MY NAME; WHAT I WAS DOING; ETC; ETC; ALL THIS WHILE NOT IDENTING HIMSELF OR THE HELI. IN ALL THE CONFUSION; IT BECAME IMMEDIATELY APPARENT TO ME THAT WE WERE ABOUT TO PENETRATE THE CRAIG FIELD CTL ZONE; SO I SUGGESTED THAT WE DISCUSS THIS ON THE GND INSTEAD OF USING THE LCL UNICOM CHANNEL. THE HELI THEN BROKE OFF TO THE S AND I CALLED CRAIG TWR ON 132.10 AND REQUESTED PERMISSION TO LAND. IT WAS NOT UNTIL AFTER I LANDED THAT A HELI CREW MEMBER APCHED ME AND IDENTED THEIR ROTORCRAFT AS A DUVAL COUNTY POLICE DEPT HELI AND HIMSELF AS A DUVAL COUNTY POLICE OFFICER. I SHOWED MY PLT'S LICENSE AND MEDICAL CERTIFICATE TO THE POLICE OFFICER IN THE PRESENCE OF MR X OF THE NORTH FLORIDA FSDO-15. THE POLICE OFFICER'S CLAIM IS THAT I WAS FLYING AT 600 FT AGL. I DENY THAT I WAS FLYING AT 600 FT AGL. FURTHER; THAT I WAS ABOVE OR AT 1000 FT AGL. IN SUMMARY; I THINK THE ACTION THAT THIS POLICE HELI CREW TOOK WAS FAR MORE THAN REQUIRED. THEIR ACTIONS WERE FAR TOO NEGLIGENT; ENDANGERING CREWS OF BOTH ACFT AND THOSE ACFT TRYING TO COM ON JACKSONVILLE APCH. THIS IS A PRIME EXAMPLE OF AN 'ABUSE OF AUTHORITY' THAT COULD HAVE ENDED IN A CATASTROPHIC ACCIDENT. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A ROCKET SCIENTIST TO KNOW THAT A LIGHT HELI AND A LIGHT PLANE IN FORMATION (WITHOUT COM) IS A CATASTROPHE WAITING TO HAPPEN. THERE IS NOT A RECOVERY PROC FOR A MAIN ROTOR BLADE TIP RIPPING THROUGH YOUR VERT STABILIZER AT THE SPD OF SOUND. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THE RPTR WAS PUT INTO JAIL FOR ABOUT 8 HRS WHILE THE SHERIFF WAS THINKING WHAT TO DO NEXT. ALL CIVIL CHARGES HAVE BEEN DROPPED; BUT THE RPTR HAS GOTTEN A LETTER OF INVESTIGATION FROM THE LCL FSDO. THE RPTR ADMITTED THAT HE WAS DOWN TO 800 FT AGL INADVERTENTLY. HIS LAWYER THINKS THAT THE FAA WOULD HAVE A HARD TIME PROVING THAT HE INTENDED TO FLY LOWER THAN 1000 FT AGL. A LCL TV STATION WANTS THE RPTR TO AID THEM IN AN INVESTIGATION OF THE SHERIFF'S DEPT THAT IS 'OUT OF CTL.' THE SHERIFF'S DEPT HAS BEEN QUOTED AS SAYING THAT THE FARS DO NOT APPLY TO THEIR OP.