Originally Posted by rustyhaight

Now, say, screener X has me and my bag in "secondary," he's run the magic wand and hankie around it and as he's putting the hankie in the "Magic Bad Thing Detector and Easy Bake Oven," I tell him in a calm, low voice: "know what, I think this search is over and I'm leaving the checkpoint to go back to the ticket counter now to talk to the (airline name) Ground Security Coordinator" then I close the bag slowly and deliberately without making any movement toward the screener above the level of the bag I'm closing. <snip>

If it was handled as described in the first case, it wouldn't, of course, get to battery and really, from a criminal perspective, I can't see how they would bee able to justify calling it assault. Which leaves the more vague "interference" violation related to 49 CFR 1540.107 and more specifically 49 CFR 1540.109. (I've read here where "distracting" a TSA screener is "nonphysical interference" and conviction carries a fine and I know there was a thread here about it.)

BUT, in the "explanation in a calm, low tone and close the bag, I'm leaving the checkpoint now" approach outlined above, say we can eliminate assault, and if the screener's duty is to check me and my stuff before allowing admission to the sterile area, and what I told him is that I no longer want to go into the sterile area, I want to go back "outside" to talk to the airline people, is not his job under 1540.107 over and, if so, how can I be "interfering?" The only appellate case I can find on "interference" is Rendon v TSA where the appellate court's test didn't hinge on freedom of speech but rather that the tone and type of speech coupled with actions and things like voice volume which "caused" the screener to shut down his screening position and call a supervisor and that it reached a point where other people were distracted by Rendon's outburst. Again, NOT what I was suggesting above which would, instead, seem to be promoting the screener's job function by freeing up both the "Locard's Exchange Proof" table and the screener for other, er, important tasks.