Originally Posted by
chollie
I wouldn't give it a second thought if I were you.
People leave the sterile area all the time - often for a smoke. This woman appears to have been singled out and targeted by some unprofessional TSOs and their management.
Agreed ^ and speaking as a smoker, I do this all the time if my flight is delayed or cancelled and I'm rebooked on a later flight and I've never been questioned (and this includes having the TSA "secret scribble" on my boarding pass from my first entry [and subsequent "re-entries")