Originally Posted by
ND Sol
If discovered outside the bounds of an administrative search, then I would agree. Otherwise, absolutely not. Our rights under the Constitution protect us from unreasonable searches. As such, if it is an unreasonable search, then everything that is gained from that search may not be used in a trial, even if that means the accused gets away with murder. That is a basic tenet of our society that many still do not appreciate.
An administrative search is non-consensual in nature and as such is only permitted in very limited circumstances so that it is not unreasonable. The courts have said that you can only search for the items directly related to the purpose of the administrative search. So if the search is trying to see if you have an elephant, the government agent can't search your wallet since an elephant can't be hidden in it. Anything incidental to a proper search may be seized even if unrelated to the search.
So if a TSO sees a potential prohibited item via the x-ray and calls for a bag search and then the bag search discovers pounds of illegal drugs, then that would be okay. However, if the TSO just sees pounds of illegal drugs and no prohibited items, then a bag search is not proper (however, in reality, a TSO can almost always say the he saw something that might be a prohibited item). Ever wonder why TSO's are not given any training in the identification of illegal drugs? Because then the administrative search may not be valid if drugs were found.
And welcome, Scots_Al!
I think you got most of it but I'd like to clear up a few things.
Yes, any search is limited in scope by the nature of the object sought. However, the admin search a TSO performs is very broad in nature in that weapons can be small. A knife can be very small, in fact, giving the TSO the right to look practically anywhere, which mostly negates the Exclusionary Rule.
I say mostly because the TSO could step beyond the bounds in he/she does something like, say, look on a zip drive. There could not be weapons in a zip, of course, so that would be excludable evidence under the Exclusionary Rule and any other evidence discovered by following the original evidence would be tossed out as Fruit of the Poisonous Tree.
A TSO is not given drug training because drug interdiction is not their function. If, however, they discover drugs then this is admissible, so long as it was under the scope of the search (and again, weapons can be small). Most anyplace you'll find drugs a weapon could have been hidden there as well (unless it's like a few pills in the smallest cubby hole ever).
A TSO won't "see" pounds of drugs on a screen. It won't register as drugs, just packages, so the only way they'll know is to open it up and look. Could it be a weapon, as you mentioned? Or could it be that they couldn't see through it?
Also note - what standard does a TSO need to meet in order to physically search your bag? Answer - little to none. There is no reasonable suspicion standard at the checkpoint As I understand it, a TSO can search at any time, any one coming through the checkpoint, so long as it meets the criteria for search - weapons and in places where weapons will be found.
Level of suspicion has nothing to do with it.