TSA forces cancer survivor to show prosthetic breast

http://news.travel.aol.com/2011/07/1...ec1_lnk3|77679

Mom Arrested For Yelling At TSA Over Daughter's Patdown

A distraught mother, en route to Baltimore, caused quite a ruckus at the Nashville airport on Saturday as she tried to protect her daughter from the TSA's much-criticized screening procedures.

Andrea Fornella Abbott, 41 of Clarksville, Tennessee, was arrested at the airport after she lost it at a TSA agent for trying to pat down her daughter, according to the Daily News.

Local police claim that Abbott shouted at agents, yelling that she didn't want her daughter to "be touched inappropriately or have her crotch grabbed," The Tennessean reports.

Security officer Sabrina Birge told police that "(Abbott) told me in a very stern voice with quite a bit of attitude that they were not going through that X-ray." Despite being told that the machine was "not an x-ray," Abbott insisted, "I still don't want someone to see our bodies naked."

Abbott then tried to shoot video of the incident on her cell phone, but cops arrested her before she could record anything. The cops cuffed her and hauled her off to jail, charging her with disorderly conduct, the Daily Mail reports. She was released that night.

After the uproar over the patdown of a 6-year old girl in New Orleans in April and the patdown of a baby in May, the TSA has modified its policy about patdowns of children.

The TSA has been called out multiple times publicly in the past year. In December, Khloe Kardashian likened patdowns to rape; in February, Alaska Representative Sharon Cissna returned home by boat to avoid a TSA patdown; in May, former beauty queen Susie Castillo issued a teary video plea over the TSA after a patdown at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport; and in June, an elderly cancer-stricken woman had her adult diaper removed by the TSA because they felt something "warm and firm."

Earlier this month, a Seattle woman called the TSA racist for inspecting her curly hair.

Just out of interest, what security checks do the TSA employees have to go through before they're allowed to do pat-downs?

Over here, before working with children, you have to have a full criminal record check etc.

You wouldn't trust a stranger with your children why would you trust a TSA employee with your children?

And I agree. It's all scare tactics. "If we don't do this, you'll have a suicide bomber on your flight!" etc and some people WILL believe it!
You WILL NOT find everything on a pat-down or a full body scan. So why put people through such atrocious treatment with a less than 100% success rate?

one good turn deserves another

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In a complaint filed Monday morning in the U.S. District Court for Minnesota, Ventura is suing the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and its secretary, Janet Napolitano, as well as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and its administrator, John Pistole.

Ventura accuses the agencies of violating his "basic rights to privacy and dignity, and his right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures," after he received a pat-down by a TSA agent at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in November 2010.

Ventura, who said he has a titanium implant after hip replacement surgery in 2008, alleges the pat-down included "warrantless, non-suspicion-based offensive touching, gripping and rubbing of the genital and other sensitive areas of his body," which, the lawsuit contends, met "the definition for an unlawful sexual assault."

Ventura's Minneapolis-based attorney, David Olsen, told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS this afternoon, "The security procedures are going too far. There's a line somewhere and he believes that line has been crossed."

Olsen said Ventura no longer flies on commercial aviation because he is unwilling to submit to either a pat-down or a full-body scan, putting his job as host of cable television's Conspiracy Theory show, in jeopardy.

"He's made a decision that someone needs to make a stand and he's not one to back down from a fight," said Olsen. "He sees the erosion of civil liberties here and he's willing to stand up not only for himself, but for others."

A T.S.A. spokesperson said the agency "does not comment on pending litigation."

TSA employee charged with 'lewdness with a child'.

SPRING CREEK — A city officer arrested a Spring Creek man Wednesday morning at the Elko Area Regional Airport, where he works for the Transportation Security Administration, on a warrant charging six counts of lewdness with a child.

The Elko County Sheriff’s Office was notified in July of possible sexual contact between David Ralph Anderson, 61, and a girl younger than 14.

According to Elko Justice Court records, the victim told investigators that on seven to 10 occasions between 2010 and this year, Anderson allegedly taught the victim about various sexual acts and had sexual contact in the form of touching each other’s genitals.

Investigators reported Anderson also told the girl to sleep in his bed and taught her to say various vulgar words associated with body parts and sexual activities.

In addition, the girl stated he would rub lotion all over her body, placed his hand up her shirt to touch her breasts, had her watch pornographic films with him, encouraged her to consume alcohol and would French kiss her.

Deputy District Attorney Tyler Ingram submitted a warrant request to Elko Justice of the Peace Al Kacin on Aug. 23, which was granted along with an objection to any reduction of bail.

Anderson, who is a TSA employee according to Elko County Jail records, is being held on $250,000 bail.

TSA begins random road inspections in Tennessee

Tuesday Tennessee was first to deploy VIPR simultaneously at five weigh stations and two bus stations across the state.

Agents are recruiting truck drivers, like Rudy Gonzales, into the First Observer Highway Security Program to say something if they see something.

"Not only truck drivers, but cars, everybody should be aware of what's going on, on the road," said Gonzales.

It's all meant to urge every driver to call authorities if they see something suspicious.

"Somebody sees something somewhere and we want them to be responsible citizens, report that and let us work it through our processes to abet the concern that they had when they saw something suspicious," said Paul Armes, TSA Federal Security Director for Nashville International Airport.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol checked trucks with drug and bomb sniffing dogs during random inspections.

"The bottom line is this: if you see something suspicious say something about it," Gibbons said Tuesday.

The random inspections really aren't any more thorough normal, according to Tennessee Highway Patrol Colonel Tracy Trott who says paying attention to details can make a difference. Trott pointed out it was an Oklahoma state trooper who stopped Timothy McVay for not having a license plate after the Oklahoma City bombing in the early 1990s.

Tuesday's statewide "VIPR" operation isn't in response to any particular threat, according to officials.

Armes said intelligence indicates law enforcement should focus on the highways as well as the airports.

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