Search Checked Bags After Finding Knife
 

Took a flight from CMH to HOU and just got back. I was dumb and forgot to take my knife http://www.tactical-life.com/online/...rs-for-lawmen/ out of my carryon bag.

I was in the middle of opting out when they asked whose it was, showed me the knife and I literally said Oh S**t. I didn’t know what to expect, arrest, ticket, whatever, but all that happened is that the knife was taken away from me and I was given the option of mailing it back to myself or returning it to my car.

When I got to Houston I noticed that all three of my checked bags had a TSA inspection note in them. Two questions:

Is it standard policy to inspect all of your checked bags if you something dumb like I did?

Am I permanently on some kind of list which will subject me to extra security?

1. If the TSA Officer actually took a report and collected ID from you, you are not out of the woods. The decision as to whether to propose a fine is made at HQ, not at the checkpoint.

2. It could be that the checked luggage search was random or triggered by something harmless, but it could be that your bags were pulled after the knife incident. No way of telling.

3. You will find out if you've been added to a watch list the next few times you fly. Don't make a big deal of things, just go with the flow and watch what happens. Give yourself extra time until you've assured yourself that you aren't being subjected to extra scrutiny.

4. Needless to say a "second offense" won't be taken lightly. You will need to do a self-inspection to make sure there's nothing untoward in your checked or carry-on luggage for the conceiveable future.

Did they detain you, ask you any questions, or take your ID to write down your info?

If so, you don't have to worry. TSA is not competent enough to deal with the information. If not, you have nothing to worry about.

TSA must find a million knives a year. Unless there is more to this story, it's unlikely that the clerk would even waste the time talking to his supervisor about it, much less taking it further.

TSA maintaining a blacklist is something we should all worry about.

They didn't ask me anything. Don't know if they took my ID or not as I put it on the counter when they searched me. I also filled out my information on the mailer so they could track me that way.

Truly not trying to be critical... but I would never give my information to the TSA voluntarily. I did once when threatened with arrest after a simple opt out, but I even regret that. I wished I'd have read the FT threads about personal info and the privacy act first. I never travel with anything more important than my privacy.

You can bet they kept track of who you are and what they mailed to you. I had one of those 5.11 knives myself. I suspect you now think the cost of replacing the knife is preferable to the disgusting feeling you have with the TSA having your personal information. True?

The very existence of the TSA and DHS overall is something we should all worry about.

Got nothing to do with that. OP violated the law. But, the decisions as to whether to pursue violations are made at HQ. In most circumstances, the result is no action. When you've actually done something wrong isn't the time to argue about ID because TSA most certainly can temporarily detain you for a law enforcement officer and they most certainly can hold you until they can figure out who you are, most likely from ID on you as well as backtracking your BP.

I've left my knife and multitool in my carry on a few times at SLC. No report, no ID taken. They put it in a bag with your name on it and put it in a safe while you go buy stamps and an envelope. Very painless, but spendy mistake.

If they did not take down your information, they did not know who you were, so the checked bags being searched was probably unrelated.

Since when does TSA have legal powers of detention? Are TSOs now considered law enforcement officers? When did that happen, and where was this authority conveyed upon them?

OP certainly did not violate the law - he did not enter the sterile area with a prohibited item, nor did he knowingly attempt to do so. He was unaware that the prohibited item was in his bag; when informed of that fact, he made no attempt to take the prohibited item into the sterile area, complied with the instructions of the TSOs, and did not interfere with the screening process in any way.

I was happy to hear from OP, however, that the TSOs did give him the option of mailing the prohibited item to himself or returning it to his car, since I have heard plenty of stories of TSOs disposing of prohibited items without asking travelers what they wish to do with their property, since that property is not permitted inside the sterile area.

OP - I hope you never forget about your knife again; it looks like an expensive folder and I'd hate to lose it to an overzealous TSO or LEO who oversteps their authority and "confiscates" (steals) your knife.

1. TSA Officers are not law enforcement officers (LEO's) in general. They, just like other civilian inspection types such as the inspection staff for CBP, may temporarily detain an individual pending the arrival of a LEO (which is why DHS requires a LEO at each checkpoint).

2. Yes, if you read the CFR rules, it's a violation to enter the checkpoint with an undeclared prohibited item.

This one strikes me as a solution looking for a problem. OP got the benefit of the doubt from the Officer he dealt with, even to the extent of being offered the opportunity to mail the contraband item back to himself.

OP doesn't appear to be complaining about his treatment thus far. He appears concerned that he will be singled out for enanced security measures going forward.

In common language, we use the word "illegal" to describe something that's a crime, not merely a civil violation. Intent is not always required to assess a civil penalty, but, with only a few exceptions, it is required to find somebody guilty of a crime.

Agreed, his concern was that he might be singled out for enhanced screening in the future based on this one incident.

And agreed, he was given the benefit of the doubt by the TSOs he dealt with, in that they believed his assertion that he had forgotten that he had a knife in his carry-on.

But "even to the extent of being offered the opportunity to mail the contraband item back to himself"?

TSOs have no legal authority to confiscate a prohibited item or to dispose of it without the owner's consent. Indeed, TSOs do not even have the legal authority to confiscate an illegal item such as narcotics. Their only authority in such matters is to prohibit the entry of persons possessing prohibited items into the sterile area, and to notify local law enforcement if they witness a traveler in possession of an illegal item.

Any attempt by a TSO to take a traveler's personal property, either to keep it for themselves or to dispose of it in the trash or to put it in the "confiscated items" pile, is theft. If a TSO finds a prohibited item during the course of a search, he is obligated to inform the owner of the item that they must dispose of the item before they will be allowed to enter the sterile area, by giving it to someone, mailing somewhere, leaving it in his vehicle (if available), or even disposing of the item in the trash. But the choice of method is completely up to the traveler (unless the item is actually illegal, in which case the TSO is obligated to report the illegal item to local LEOs).

"Even to the extent..." You make it sound like the TSO did him a favor by not relieving him of his knife without his consent.

Ummm, yes it does.

Just like people that carry 3.5 oz of liquids or step 1" outside the crosswalk. Maybe he should have have been waterboarded?

TADA! Exactly what I'm talking about. HQ takes a situation that poses NO RISK, without even a suggestion of ill intent, and without due process decides a punishment and keeps a government blacklist without any oversight. Do you see anything wrong with this picture?

I the OPs case, I specifically said he shouldn't volunteer information. In my case, I opted out; nothing more. I was threatened with arrest when I asked why they were asking for ID (and writing the information into a log book) for everyone that opted out.

Yes, they can. My point is about measured response.

There is nothing to indicate this case was anything other than forgetfulness. This could happen to anyone.

You seem to have a pretty black and white approach to all of this. TSA can also strip search you for having 3.5 ounces of shampoo. Does that sound OK to you too? Would you be OK with a government detaining you for walking 6" outside the crosswalk? How about fining you $11,000 for doing so? You would have broken the law after all.

Short answer, no. Why would they bother rooting around in your checked bags which have been x-rayed?