Mom says TSA treated family "like dogs" during son's pat-down
Source: CBS News
A mother is outraged with the Transportation Security Administration after she said officers treated her family “like dogs” at the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Jennifer Williamson posted a video to Facebook on Sunday that shows a TSA agent thoroughly patting down her 13-year-old son for about two minutes. She said her family spent about an hour at the checkpoint and missed their flight.
The TSA said the procedures performed by the officer in the video met new pat-down standards that went into effect earlier this month, reports CBS News correspondent Omar Villafranca. Instead of several variations, there is now just one full-body pat-down.
“We were treated with utter disrespect as if we were criminals,” Williamson said in an interview you’ll see only on “CBS This Morning.” She turned her anger into action, recording a TSA officer and posting it on Facebook. “I believe he was patted down excessively. They went over his sensitive areas, a little more than necessary, especially given that he wasn’t wearing bulky clothing or anything like that,” Williamson said.
Williamson said the whole thing started when agents found a laptop in his book bag as it went through the scanning machine. They then said her son would have to submit to a pat-down, even though he did not set off the body scanner. She requested they screen him in other ways because her son suffers from sensory processing disorder, which makes him sensitive to touch. In the Facebook video, the agent explained the procedure and then patted down his backside, front and down his legs. His supervisor who was observing them then instructed the man to complete the final step. As per policy, the TSA officer used the back of his hands for pat-downs over sensitive areas of the body. The TSA said the boy cooperated during the screening process and all approved procedures were followed. As for the wait time, in a statement, the agency said the passengers were at the checkpoint for “approximately 45 minutes, which included the time it took to discuss screening procedures with the mother and to screen three carry-on items that required further inspection.” “His first question to me was, ‘I don’t understand why they did this. I don’t know what I did wrong,’ and to me that was a sign of trauma for him to think that he had done anything wrong,” Williamson said.
Read more: http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/mom-says-tsa-treated-family-like-dogs-during-sons-pat-down/ar-BByX34P?li=BBnbcA1
So, don't worry because, "the procedures performed by the officer in the video met new pat-down standards"? Thanks Trump!
= new reply since forum marked as read
the kid had a lap top, the people in the blue smurf uniforms, could have asked to open the lap top and turn it on, it's a real simple procedure to make sure it is what it is.
Then they could have used another wand that does have the same agent on it to detect if there is any gun powder or any other chemical to detect if something is wrong, on the clothes or body for the same procedure. There are markers, for residual, they have machines that are able to detect this stuff, they do have it. And when you stand in that Cherkoff designed tubed to have a full body scan arms sticking up into the air, your legs are spread out it looking for guns, knives and anything else that does not belong there to look under your clothes ----------------tell me what am I exactly missing here.
You have to take off your shoes, and belts unless you have been Pre-screened through the TSA for a FEE , then you get to get in line at the gate and look at your ticket to see if you have a zone for further segregation purposes to board the plane, and if your lucky you get nothing unless you pay for pleasure of riding the airline, being treated like a piece of s**t going down the toilet
So in essence your 4th amendment and 5th amendment right to privacy and illegal search and seizure is now thrown out the window, while the orange hair guy gets to toodle around at over $206,000 a hour on a military jet and not having to go through what the general population has to go through, welcome to America..................the land of paranoia, and living the orange hair "guy" dream
The most shocking thing about this is that the child is white. I'm brown and this has always happened to my family. I'm always careful to not have any metal on me, remove my liquids, laptop, phone, shoes, jacket/sweatshirt, belt, watch, etc. and still they need to pat down my empty pockets, crotch, butt, every single time.
But now they're harassing white children? Maybe they're hoping the public will contact their representatives to change this?
I hate the freaking TSA and their Gestapo tactics. I refuse to travel by air, except for parental funerals.
However, I wish people would abandon the expression "treated like dogs." It implies there is a general treatment of dogs that is substandard. Let's not promote the idea that this is the way dogs are treated.
In fact, many dogs are treated rather well.
Cher
Sorry, the best I can give you on that response is that the pet owner might be mildly misguided. Calling this cruel, even "kind of" cruel is a response that invites the "whiny liberal" label. You must be the life of the party.
Anyone who is going to go to the trouble of dressing up their pet is probably a little overly enthusiastic about their pet companion. One would have to go to the trouble of buying a pint-sized bathrobe. A person who abuses their pet doesn't care enough to spend that kind of money, take the pictures, post them, and so on.
ASPCA says that the pet costume should not restrict the animal. I don't see anything about the robe or the sunglasses that restrict the animal.
On the contrary, I think most animals like to join in the fun and be a part of holiday activities. Any animal companion whose pet doesn't want to go along with it is going to drop it.
Time to stop taking yourself so seriously.
Cher