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passenger flew from LAX to Taipei with loaded Ruger with 6 bullets in her backpack

passenger flew from LAX to Taipei with loaded Ruger with 6 bullets in her backpack

Old Apr 16, 2017, 2:32 pm
  #31  
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Originally Posted by ShutteLag
wouldn't that set off the metal detectors? or is it one of those all-polymer+carbon fiber guns that contain almost no metal?
The xray screener missed the loaded gun in Atlanta. It was inside the pax's purse. They fired the screener (although I guess he can appeal the firing), so presumably whatever the gun/ammo were made of, he should have recognized it on the xray.

No idea what kind of firearm/ammo the cop carried from LAX-TPE. Is there non-metal ammo as well as handguns?
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Old Apr 16, 2017, 3:04 pm
  #32  
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I think the officer behaved appropriately, once the weapon was remembered. A lifetime LEO ban seems overly harsh. A 2-4 week suspension without pay seems a much more logical solution.
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Old Apr 16, 2017, 3:28 pm
  #33  
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Originally Posted by chollie
The xray screener missed the loaded gun in Atlanta. It was inside the pax's purse. They fired the screener (although I guess he can appeal the firing), so presumably whatever the gun/ammo were made of, he should have recognized it on the xray.

No idea what kind of firearm/ammo the cop carried from LAX-TPE. Is there non-metal ammo as well as handguns?
She had a Ruger LCP loaded with 6 rounds of hollow point 380 bullets Nice little inexpensive piece. I assume it was her back-up guns.

There is a pretty good chance that the TSA or the Santa Monica Police Department doesn't know about this incident yet... guess they will never find out.

Last edited by ShutteLag; Apr 16, 2017 at 3:36 pm
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Old Apr 16, 2017, 3:50 pm
  #34  
 
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"Honest Mistake" - forgetting to put your shampoo in the kippie bag

"Criminal negligence/stupidity" - forgetting where you put your loaded gun and ammunition.

"Criminal negligence/stupidity x 10" - "forgetting" where your loaded gun is when you are traveling with 3 kids by air to foreign countries with very strict gun laws.

This woman carries a badge; as I see it, that mean she should be held to a far higher standard of accountability when it comes to her weapon.

As for the TSA missing it, well, unfortunately that's not exactly surprising. How many sets of tests have they failed?
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Old Apr 16, 2017, 4:11 pm
  #35  
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Originally Posted by ShutteLag
She had a Ruger LCP loaded with 6 rounds of hollow point 380 bullets Nice little inexpensive piece. I assume it was her back-up guns.

There is a pretty good chance that the TSA or the Santa Monica Police Department doesn't know about this incident yet... guess they will never find out.
If they wait long enough, the checkpoint video will be deleted and there will be no way to hold anyone accountable.
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Old Apr 16, 2017, 4:38 pm
  #36  
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Originally Posted by chollie
If they wait long enough, the checkpoint video will be deleted and there will be no way to hold anyone accountable.
that's exactly what I was wondering....
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Old Apr 20, 2017, 4:15 pm
  #37  
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Interesting. In ATL, a screener was held responsible for missing a firearm and was (according to TSA) fired.

In LAX, no one is getting fired, but there will be retraining because procedures weren't followed. ??? Haven't they all been through the 'academy' within the last year?

I suspect an LTSO or even STSO was involved and that's why no one is getting fired. I wouldn't be surprised if the cop identified herself and TSA allowed her to take the firearm through - 'screener discretion'.
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Old Apr 20, 2017, 4:26 pm
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Originally Posted by chollie
I suspect an LTSO or even STSO was involved and that's why no one is getting fired. I wouldn't be surprised if the cop identified herself and TSA allowed her to take the firearm through - 'screener discretion'.
Ironic if it lands her in a Taiwanese prison.
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Old Apr 20, 2017, 4:45 pm
  #39  
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Originally Posted by ShutteLag
Thanks!

That Reuters report originated from a Taiwanese English-language news....

Guess the TSA must have missed too many guns and knives recently for this to make it to local news in LA. (let alone national news)
The story made the Los Angeles Daily News this morning:
California officer detained in Taiwan after TSA misses gun in her bag at LAX

Excerpts
***

The Santa Monica Police Department was notified last week that Grant had been detained at an airport in Taiwan during a layover to Thailand, Santa Monica police confirmed Wednesday. Grant was on vacation with family at the time, said Lt. Saul Rodriguez, the departments public information officer.

***

TSAs Melendez said the off-duty police officer went through regular screening procedures rather than expedited security.

***

According to the SMPDs Rodriguez, Grant was carrying a personal, off-duty weapon, not a service weapon. He could not say whether Grant, who has been in contact with one of her department supervisors, has been booked or charged with any crime in Taiwan. Shes dealing with potential legal proceedings in that country, he said.

***

Asked whether the incident could affect Grants status as a police officer, Rodriguez said it was not yet clear.

***
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Old Apr 20, 2017, 5:25 pm
  #40  
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I think it's going to be interesting to see how this plays out. It seems to me that she declared the gun at the appropriate time to declare things when entering/transiting Taipei - so what laws have been broken, exactly? But it's been a week and she's still there, so clearly someone thinks there is a problem - or doesn't want to take a stand either way, perhaps.

That said, I don't know how this would play out in reverse. Suppose someone came from TPE to LAX, landed and immediately declared something prohibited. I thought in that situation it was pretty much 'no harm, no foul' - you were OK as long as you fully and honestly declared in time.
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Old Apr 20, 2017, 7:25 pm
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Originally Posted by chollie
I think it's going to be interesting to see how this plays out. It seems to me that she declared the gun at the appropriate time to declare things when entering/transiting Taipei - so what laws have been broken, exactly? But it's been a week and she's still there, so clearly someone thinks there is a problem - or doesn't want to take a stand either way, perhaps.

That said, I don't know how this would play out in reverse. Suppose someone came from TPE to LAX, landed and immediately declared something prohibited. I thought in that situation it was pretty much 'no harm, no foul' - you were OK as long as you fully and honestly declared in time.
In a hours old article TSA admits "standard procedures were not followed".

Last edited by sunshinekid; Apr 20, 2017 at 9:16 pm Reason: merge consecutive posts
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Old Apr 20, 2017, 8:06 pm
  #42  
 
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Originally Posted by chollie
I think it's going to be interesting to see how this plays out. It seems to me that she declared the gun at the appropriate time to declare things when entering/transiting Taipei - so what laws have been broken, exactly? But it's been a week and she's still there, so clearly someone thinks there is a problem - or doesn't want to take a stand either way, perhaps.
From what I find on the web, in Taiwan private citizens, which is what she would be there, are prohibited from owning guns. In other words, she violated their very strict laws against having a gun. That she declared the gun may not be relevant; she should not have brought it into the country at all.

FWIW the gun would be have illegal at her final destination as well. Taking a gun into Thailand requires prior authorization and carrying a gun requires a gun license.
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Old Apr 21, 2017, 6:51 am
  #43  
 
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Originally Posted by chollie
I think it's going to be interesting to see how this plays out. It seems to me that she declared the gun at the appropriate time to declare things when entering/transiting Taipei - so what laws have been broken, exactly? But it's been a week and she's still there, so clearly someone thinks there is a problem - or doesn't want to take a stand either way, perhaps.

That said, I don't know how this would play out in reverse. Suppose someone came from TPE to LAX, landed and immediately declared something prohibited. I thought in that situation it was pretty much 'no harm, no foul' - you were OK as long as you fully and honestly declared in time.
Admitting that you have broken a law does not excuse you from the consequences of breaking it.

I don't know the gun laws in Taiwan, but if it's illegal to bring a gun in, then she broke the law by bringing a gun in, whether she declared the weapon or not. The Taiwanese government may show her some leniency due to the accidental* nature of the transgression, and the fact that she admitted it immediately, but if it's illegal to bring in a gun, and she brought in a gun, then she broke the law, however accidentally.

*Accidental, in this case, means unfathomably careless to the point of unmitigated stupidity when caring for a deadly weapon. In my humble opinion, of course. Both American and Taiwanese law may see things differently, but I've said before, and firmly believe, that anyone who forgets where their loaded firearms are, especially to the point where they 'accidentally' bring a weapon into a place where they know weapons are prohibited, should have their 2nd Amendment rights permanently revoked.
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Old Apr 21, 2017, 10:50 am
  #44  
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She should get the same kind of 'pass' from US authorities that a recently-hired FAM is getting after leaving her weapon in an airplane toilet.

People forget things, even professionals. Everybody is entitled to make a mistake, right?

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Old Apr 21, 2017, 11:18 am
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Originally Posted by chollie
She should get the same kind of 'pass' from US authorities that a recently-hired FAM is getting after leaving her weapon in an airplane toilet.

People forget things, even professionals. Everybody is entitled to make a mistake, right?

I really hope that's sarcasm.

No, I don't think anyone is entitled to make mistakes with deadly weapons. If you chose to own a gun, you should be held responsible for it, and that includes knowing where it it at all times and not taking into onto a plane and then to a country where it is prohibited.

Would you expect a country with strict drug laws to give her a pass if she brought along some marijuana? After all, that's legal in California now.
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