U.S. Airline Screening Plan Intrusive
 

[http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20030825/us_nm/security_airlines_dc_4]U.S. Airline Screening Plan Intrusive[/url]

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"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety." -- Ben Franklin

[This message has been edited by tazi (edited 08-25-2003).]

Tazi, I agree with you concerns. I don't think screeners or the infrastructure engineered to assist us should be used for anything beyond aviation-safety and anti-terrorism. The only exception to that for me is if I stumble onto something really big in a carry-on, like a human head or 5kg of cocaine.

What if the human head is not "really big"? http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...um/biggrin.gif

Bruce

Oh, shrunken heads are fine http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...um/biggrin.gif

Thats a good one, however there are those who believe that we should not say anything, even if we do find a human head in a bag because we are not there to specifically look for human heads. Plus the prescence of human heads is not a threat to airline security as long as we do not allow the guy to take his machette on board as well so that he might add to his "collection." ...LOL The rationale eludes me.

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"All life is a concatenation of ephemeralities" - Alfred Kahn, American economist

Seriously, this does present a thorny dilemma to the TSA. Let's suppose for a moment that they decided to ignore amounts of cocaine below 5 kilograms (from CATSA Screener's example, above). If a screener finds a block of cocaine, does he then have to weigh it to see if it crossed the threshold into prohibited territory? How about a group of travelers, each with 4 kilograms of cocaine? Are they OK, or is the amount aggregated for this purpose? You see how ridiculous this can get.

I have always been a big supporter of searching only on probable cause, but I really haven't been able to reach a conclusion as to how screeners should respond when they stumble across something obviously requiring that some kind of action be taken. I can't believe that a screener finding a human head, for instance, should just say, "Have a nice trip."

At some level, people who bring human heads and significant quantities of cocaine to airports deserve whatever happens to them. They are guilty of terminal stupidity at a minimum.

Bruce

Thats true, but there are those who actually believe that we should look the other way. Once you open a bag and find something, how can anyone just forget it and move on? If I were to find a human head, I think my reaction would bring enough people over to ensure that the offending person gets caught.

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"All life is a concatenation of ephemeralities" - Alfred Kahn, American economist

edited for punctuation.

[This message has been edited by The Unknown Screener (edited 08-26-2003).]

Up here we don't have any specific guidance or official policies regarding drugs. Unofficially we ignore amounts that look like they're for personal use and it's up to the screener if he or she wants to do something about large amounts. We were advised the best course of action is to let people with large amounts pass and then call the authorities at the destination airport.

Although unfortunately the courts might rule that contraband found even in a voluntary search done by civilian personnel would be admissible in court, I beg to disagree.

A search at the airport is a search done by non-law enforcement civilians only for the purpose of checking for weapons or other direct threats to aviation security. I feel that any expansion on this search to include illegal items such as drugs and excessive 'cash' should be banned. If a security screener finds drugs, $50K, a human head, or whatever, their only course of action is to determine if the article is a threat to aviation security. Period. If not, then the passenger should be allowed to leave the checkpoint with whatever they have in their bag, and the screener needs to keep it to themselves, regardless of their personal beliefs, opinions, or self-delusions of being a cop.

If a cop is standing nearby, and happens to see the contraband in someone's bag (using the clearly defined rule of 'plain sight'), then the cop can take whatever action they feel is required at that point...NOT because a screener yelped "hey come look at this!".

From what I understood, because of the "homeland security" tie between Customs, the Coast Guard, and TSA, TSA can report suspicious substances or paraphernalia to Customs or law enforcement. I could be wrong about this though. I just vaguely remember reading this is another thread.

Also, regarding transporting cash, I thought there was a limit of $5000 or $6000 that one could bring through an airport. I know that if someone is searched by law enforcement on the road or anywhere else and is found with greater than $6K, the officers are obligated to confiscate it without returning it -- even if the citizen is never charged with anything. This provision was put in place as one of the maneuvers to "fight the war on drugs."

Similarly, any bank transaction greater than (I think) $10,000 is documented and forwarded somewhere, also to help fight the drug trade. This is the "Know Your Customer" initiative that was put in place a few years ago.

I suspect that these initiatives are in place as much to prevent USD from being laundered and moved offshore or stuffed under mattresses than anything. The more cashless we become, the easier it is to regulate the traffic of the currency -- and to keep track of it for taxation enforcement.

If TSA's scope does not include this sort of thing, I have no doubt that it will broaden in a matter of time.

Here's how it goes for us at our airport.

If during the process of screening a bag or person and you stumble onto drugs you are to contact a supervisor and have them contact a LEO. It may be our job to catch problems with planes but if we willing let someone leave with drugs and are caught, we as screeners may face possible criminal charges.

The money thing is this, if you travel out of country with more then $10,000 dollars you must declare it to Customs and if we screeners find a large sum of money, we call for a supervisor.


Saying that a screener shouldnt report this stuff in my mind is stupid thats like saying that while on shift early in the morning I was down stairs and saw a man shot someone but since that man didnt fly, he wasnt a threat to aviation, so no reason to report it.

If I see a human head in a bag, its suspicson to me at that point and at that point needs to be address.

Even though we're screeners doesnt mean we are trying to be cops. All screeners are US citizens and some us feel its our duty as US citizens to report this stuff.

[This message has been edited by Screener (edited 08-26-2003).]

It is your duty as a US citizen to uphold and respect the Constitution and what is left of the 4th Amendment. It is NOT your duty to use your position as an airport screener to broaden the search powers of the Government and report on your fellow citizens when they are found with items that are NOT within the scope of your intended search.

The argument about someone being shot is not relevent here...anyone using prudent common sense would know that if they saw someone being shot, they would call the police. The issue here deals with airport screeners acting as de facto police agents and using their searching process to uncover illegal substances or objects which have nothing to do with the scope of the search being performed.

Your job is to hunt for objects which pose an obvious threat to aviation security or appear on the published banned items list. Period. If your supervisors have been telling you otherwise, then I will relish seeing the cases that result from these unconstitutional searches in the court system.

The topic is about CAPPS II, please http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...orum/smile.gif

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"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety." -- Ben Franklin

True..

Thing about this list, we the screeners have never seen them, so if they want us looking for someone in specific we have no clue how to do so.

We hear about the list on a constant basis but we, the screeners have ever seen it, so I dont really understand its purpose.

[This message has been edited by Screener (edited 08-26-2003).]

[This message has been edited by Screener (edited 08-26-2003).]

Sreener: I understand the $10,000 rule, but merely observing " a large sum of money" seems rather subjective. If a person has $4,000 in his pocket, do you count it, then allow the passenger to go, or detain the person and call a supervisor, thinking perhaps he has more hidden on his person or in his bag?