Watch your bags! (TSA planting "evidence" and accusing pax)

wsuffa

wsuffa

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Unf'ingbelievable.

TSA always claims to be doing "administrative" searches, and that they aren't looking for drugs or other crime evidence. Here's proof that some of the screeners think they're running a dragnet. And more proof that the agency is out of control and unaccountable.

After pulling her laptop out of her carry-on bag, sliding the items through the scanning machines, and walking through a detector, she went to collect her things.

A TSA worker was staring at her. He motioned her toward him.

Then he pulled a small, clear plastic bag from her carry-on - the sort of baggie that a pair of earrings might come in. Inside the bag was fine, white powder.

She remembers his words: "Where did you get it?"
......
Answer truthfully, the TSA worker informed her, and everything will be OK.
......
Now picture her expression as the TSA employee started to smile.

Just kidding, he said. He waved the baggie. It was his.
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"Protecting us" my ***.

Link to full article
 
Whew....everything's fine people, move along :rolleyes:

Update: Ann Davis, the TSA spokeswoman, said this afternoon that the worker is no longer employed by the agency as of today. She said privacy laws prevented her from saying if he was fired or left on his own.
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No longer employed? He ought to be in jail. There is no excuse for this agency and the atmosphere they seem to cultivate for some of their people. At least I haven't run into this nonsense at most of the airports I frequent. Grrrr.
 
Obviously this was a security test, like climbing on the pitot tube to do a B&E on a plane. :P
 
wsuffa said:
Unf'ingbelievable.

TSA always claims to be doing "administrative" searches, and that they aren't looking for drugs or other crime evidence. Here's proof that some of the screeners think they're running a dragnet. And more proof that the agency is out of control and unaccountable.



"Protecting us" my ***.

Link to full article
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Hmmm.... "Sorry, that article is no longer available."
 
One guy did one really stupid thing and either got canned or quit. Not a trend, policy, or anything worth worrying about.
 
Sadly, had it been me, and I had punched his f%$$ing lights out for pulling a stunt like that, I would be the one in the pokey for assaulting a federal officer....:nonod:
 
steingar said:
One guy did one really stupid thing and either got canned or quit. Not a trend, policy, or anything worth worrying about.
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+1. When we hear a story about some random police officer abusing their power we don't blame all of them... well at least most of us don't.
 
Ghery said:
No longer employed? He ought to be in jail. There is no excuse for this agency and the atmosphere they seem to cultivate for some of their people. At least I haven't run into this nonsense at most of the airports I frequent. Grrrr.
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That's also what happens when you give people uniforms and "badges" to make them feel important.

Funny, in countries where they actually take security seriously, the inspectors don't have elaborate uniforms or badges....
 
heh - what if she actually admitted it was hers?

him: Is this yours?
her: #*&^#$, no. It's my boyfriend's.
him: What?
her: What?
 
steingar said:
One guy did one really stupid thing and either got canned or quit. Not a trend, policy, or anything worth worrying about.
Click to expand...

Ah, let's see, we had the Denver TSA screener bring his own gun to/through the checkpoint and get off scott-free, we had the Philly TSA dogs that fail their performance tests, we had the TSA screener that detained the passenger at MKE for his baggie that read "Kip Hawley is an Idiot", I recently heard a screener at IAD telling someone that "you have no first amendment rights, and I can turn you over to the police who will detain you", we had the screener that had a passenger (campaign worker) detained and arrested for carrying cash on an airplane and admitted that she was going beyond the bounds of administrative search, we have screeners that empty passengers wallets and ask questions about their credit cards and papers, etc. We have the TSA PR representative that says "there are no 8 year olds on the watch list", and accuses the airlines of making stuff up when they are told by the same agency that they can't issue boarding passes (see the NY Times and the TSA blog this week).

I say a bunch of data points makes a trend, and indicates a systemic problem within an agency. I'd say the same thing about a company that can't control their employees.

This is a bigger problem because the TSA wants to position their employees as the "authority". With authority comes a certain responsibility.

I am reminded of Dr. Bruce's run-in with the Customs folks after a border crossing.
 
Wouldn't deny any of that, and the TSA qualifies as my least favorite government organization, and ranks just barely above Nazis and Al Quaeda for world organizations. I just thought too much was being read into one datum.
 
Ghery said:
No longer employed? He ought to be in jail. There is no excuse for this agency and the atmosphere they seem to cultivate for some of their people. At least I haven't run into this nonsense at most of the airports I frequent. Grrrr.
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If TSA pulled this on me, here's the script:

me: Call your supervisor, call the terminal manager, call the police supervisor and get ready to be miserable. While you're doing that, I'm cancelling my flight and calling my attorney. He's not a good attorney, he's a truly nasty attorney. And he's my first cousin.

Let's all find a nice, quiet room where we can discuss your abuse of authority. I'll also be calling the local ACLU office, my Congressman and Senator.

(yes, I have my lawyer on speed dial...)
 
SCCutler said:
For anyone who believes that creation or expansion of a federal government bureaucracy is the answer to a perceived problem, this story is a cautionary tale.
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I'm trying to parse your statement.

So, in response to a problem we should not create or expand government solutions? Or save them for real problems not perceived ones? Or simply be cautious when we do? :dunno:
 
sba55 said:
That's also what happens when you give people uniforms and "badges" to make them feel important.

Funny, in countries where they actually take security seriously, the inspectors don't have elaborate uniforms or badges....
Click to expand...

In this country we give them out to make others think they are important.
 
alaskaflyer said:
I'm trying to parse your statement.

So, in response to a problem we should not create or expand government solutions? Or save them for real problems not perceived ones? Or simply be cautious when we do? :dunno:
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We should only create government solutions as a last resort, because legislatively-created bureucracies rarely work, and almost never work well.
 
alaskaflyer said:
I'm trying to parse your statement.

So, in response to a problem we should not create or expand government solutions? Or save them for real problems not perceived ones? Or simply be cautious when we do? :dunno:
Click to expand...


How about let people deal with it themselves within their own families and communities. That way they can create their own "self esteem", pay less taxes and not rely on hope and change which is essentially an admission of giving up on yourself.
 
SCCutler said:
For anyone who believes that creation or expansion of a federal government bureaucracy is the answer to a perceived problem, this story is a cautionary tale.
Click to expand...
Let me add another, personal cautionary tale. This was during the peak of the war on drugs when the Customs and Treasury officers were being bonused a %-age of seizures ~1991.

I shared a heavy single, a Cessna 205, wtih two other owners. One was the local Vice officer.

Coming back from the solar eclipse at Cabo, we stopped to clear customs at Douglas AZ. Middle of summer. Scorching hot. Two customs agents in long sleeves told us to stand aside, they were going to inspect the plane.

My co-owner buddy noticed something was fish and STARTED VIDEOING. THIS is a BIG over the shoulder VIDEO (VHS) and then shut it off. In a flash we were spread eagled- but too late My partner already captured the small packet dropping out of the sleeve into the aircraft.

When we got the ONE phone call, it was to his boss in Northern Arizona. One hour later, we were free to go. The two customs agents AFAIK are still working Douglas AZ. When I asked Charles why he has not pursued their removal, hed said, "they might be at my back someday".

Sigh.
 
murphey said:
If TSA pulled this on me, here's the script:

me: Call your supervisor, call the terminal manager, call the police supervisor and get ready to be miserable. While you're doing that, I'm cancelling my flight and calling my attorney. He's not a good attorney, he's a truly nasty attorney. And he's my first cousin.
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My cousin Vinny? :rofl:
 
rpadula said:
My cousin Vinny? :rofl:
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(*chortle*)

Actually, he really is my 1st cousin but not named Vinny.

Ah, wait...I could call Friends of my Dad....either Buffalo, NY or Phoenix, AZ. I'm sure he has really good contacts there who could also deal with the problem....
 
flyersfan31 said:
Sadly, had it been me, and I had punched his f%$$ing lights out for pulling a stunt like that, I would be the one in the pokey for assaulting a federal officer....:nonod:
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Guys like that only pull **** like that on tiny women like the one in the story. Agree he should be charged. What was in his baggy anyway?
 
Anthony said:
How about let people deal with it themselves within their own families and communities. That way they can create their own "self esteem", pay less taxes and not rely on hope and change which is essentially an admission of giving up on yourself.
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So they are going to do their own airport screening?
 
alaskaflyer said:
So they are going to do their own airport screening?
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I was responding to your "government solution" comment. I and most of the country are tired of the nanny state, big government and higher taxes. Read the tea leaves.

Screening should be done like El Al does it. Question people, and PROFILE. Its just good investigative work. Political correctness reduces the effectiveness of the security process. The TSA like many government agencies is pretty worthless.
 
wsuffa said:
This is a bigger problem because the TSA wants to position their employees as the "authority". With authority comes a certain responsibility.
Click to expand...

Interesting take on it. I always just assumed that it was the bone heads they were hiring, ya know the LEO wanna be types.
 
Anthony said:
Screening should be done like El Al does it. Question people, and PROFILE. Its just good investigative work. Political correctness reduces the effectiveness of the security process.
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And don't let the Constitution get in the way either!!! Plus, if we repeal the 4th & 14th Amendments, we'd achieve your goal of less government!!!


Trapper John
 
AdamZ said:
Interesting take on it. I always just assumed that it was the bone heads they were hiring, ya know the LEO wanna be types.
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The TSA gave the screeners new uniforms and metal badges to give them more of a presence of authority (stopping short of deputizing them, though I wouldn't be surprised if someday....). This was to "command respect and authority".

To be sure, there are plenty of LEO wannabes, but their ego is stroked by the TSA's policies and procedures. And the agency doesn't do enough to discourage it....

Or as one screener said at a checkpoint "you will respect my authoritah!"
 
dmccormack said:
I gotta say -- never had a problem at PIT.
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I've never really had a problem either, even when chosen for the "extra screening". They have never been rude, sometimes they are just businesslike, other times even apologetic.
 
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