N830MH

http://m.wsvn.com/article.html?hash=...s-toy-souvenir

What happened at FLL airport in a few days ago. The 5-years old boy who having a toy gun, but TSA won't allow to take a toy onto the plane. And unfortunately, he was pretty upset. He like a toys. That's why his parents who bought a toy for him.

chollie

From the link:
That is the general rule under which my nitro pills were confiscated.

It's interesting that this item wasn't immediately disposed of - in fact, it apparently remained readily accessible to TSA all this time, not buried under a pile of water and shampoo bottles and later taken to the land fill.

Boggie Dog

IF TSA thought the item was a threat of any kind TSA would not be sending the toy back to the kid.

And any claim that this was a gun of any sorts is wrong, it was a two jawed claw or gripper like some people use to help pick things up.

TSA was not only wrong in this case but was as wrong as wrong can be.

TSA fail!!

fwoomp

1) Had the TSA staff involved ever seen an actual gun?
If so, then:

2) Were they in need of eye exams?
If not, then:

3) Were they all wearing any prescribed corrective lenses they require?

mikeef

Well, the TSA finally did something useful, if only by accident.

I got in touch with the father who told me that the TSA had returned the toy, along with an additional toy, which Levi (the boy) donated to charity. Overwhelmed by the response, the family is using the incident to do some real good.

In addition to donating their own present, the family is encouraging everyone to donate toys to your local toy drive on Levi's behalf. Then, to spread the word, you can take a photo of yourself in front of the donation bin with a "thumbs up" and post it with the tag "thatstheirtoy."

So congratulations, TSA, your grinch-like actions will actually result in deserving kids everywhere having a slightly happier holiday.

Mike

petaluma1

Returning the toy, however "admirable", is an admission of wrong doing on the part of the TSA. Did the TSA send a letter of apology to Levi when returning the toy?

Kudos to Levi and his family.

Boggie Dog

What is missing from all of this is information is how TSA will take steps to prevent this type of thing from happening again.

I for one don't think "Common Sense" can be taught and that is one commodity missing entirely at TSA.

While returning the toy is a nice gesture it doesn't mitigate the traumatizing incident that TSA subjected the child to in the first place.

There should be a system of fines for TSA screenrs just like TSA has for passengers.

chollie

TSA has said that the screener followed SOP - you know, the part that says that the only rule that really matters at the checkpoint:

I wonder who paid for the replacement - or was it the original confiscated toy that for some reason didn't go straight into the bin and out to the dump? If so, who kept it aside and for what purpose?

I would also like to know where the additional toy came from: was it another toy that had been confiscated inappropriately from another little child? If so, why not return it to that child? If not, whose money paid for the new toy?

Hint: take it out of the pocket of the screener who took the item or take up a collection from all his co-workers (TSOs, LTSOs, STSOs) who witnessed the confiscation and supported him. It should not be paid for with tax dollars.

Kudoes to the family for the way they are handling this. They deserved better.

So do we all.

DaveBlaine

Scotty, tried to pm you.

mikeef

Needless to say, my post was to be taken with a heavy dose of irony.

But it looks like they did get their toy back. I wonder how many other kids out there are missing their toys, though, because their parents weren't as media savvy?

NYDN

Mike

N830MH

Oh! Let me try to fix the PM.

WillCAD

It's been a few days, but I finally watched this story and... I'm just sighing and shaking my head in disgust.

Sometimes, people don't express the situation clearly enough. Here's my take on it:

The toy is not a weapon. It cannot be used as a weapon. It does not resemble a weapon. It cannot be passed off as a weapon. Therefore, it is not a prohibited item and should not have been stolen from the 5yo child who wanted to take it onto a plane.

No reasonable human being above the age of three could possibly believe for a moment that this toy resembles a weapon enough to be mistaken for one and used to take over a plane or cause a panic among the passengers and crew. Imagine for a moment: Some ISIS or Al Queda guy pulls out a Buzz Lightyear grabber toy and screams, "I have a weapon! Do what I say!" Half of the pax would be laughing so hard, the O2 masks would be needed, while the other half beat the idiotic wannabe hijacker to a bloody pulp.

And not with his own toy, either, because that particular toy is cheap, flimsy plastic that would shatter on first impact with the bad guy's skull.

It's not a weapon. It's not a replica weapon. It's a toy. The TSOs involved in this incident are a disgrace to an already-disgraced agency. They're every bit as bad as the morons who tried to steal Peter Mayhew's lightsaber cane and should all be fired immediately.

But they're probably getting commendations for how "professionally" they handled a "disruptive" passenger (i.e. a crying 5yo who just had his favorite toy stolen by blue-uniformed strangers).

chollie

(bolding mine)

This incident really bothered me.

I'm sure someone at TSA HQ thought returning the toy was a nice gesture. I think it was a bad PR move that compounded an already stupid situation - because TSA still refused to admit that the TSOs (and LTSOs and STSOs) at that checkpoint did something stupid.

They told the public that the only rule that really matters at the checkpoint is the screener's "discretion".

In short, they sent the message loud and clear: this can and will happen again. Get over it.

You hit the nail on the head: in what fantasy world does someone on a plane stand up and threaten people with this toy and not get laughed at as the pax take him (and his toy) down?

This was one of two things, and I'm torn between which it was: either it was out-and-out theft by a TSO who wanted the toy or it was a TSO who was really over-thinking things and who has completely lost sight of the mission - to prevent threats from getting through the checkpoint. This is reminiscent of the TSO who tried to confiscate dried pasta because, as he told the pax, "you add water to it, don't you?"

Either way, his decision to take the toy was supported by his fellow TSOs, LTSOs and STSOs at the checkpoint - and later, by the folks at HQ. Let's give them all a big hand, job well done!

I notice that TSA HQ stopped short of saying "This toy is allowable and should be allowable at all times". Instead, they say (in effect): "This is a toy. It may or may not be permitted, depending on who is working the checkpoint".

Sort of the same thing they say about nitro pills. Do you feel lucky? Do you want to fly today?

Depending on who you are, this couldn't have come at a better (TSOs) or worse (pax) time. The holidays are coming up, people are taking gifts on the plane or returning with gifts. TSA HQ just sent a loud, clear message to all TSA staff and any pax paying attention: "if you see it and want it, use your discretion and take it."

jkhuggins

Oh, but TSA has been saying this for years, and continues to say it.