TSA's Investigation Into Groping Agents Ensured They Wouldn't Be Prosecuted
from the because-of-course dept
By now, you may have heard the story about how two TSA agents at Denver International Airport were fired recently after it was revealed that they had worked out a scam by which one agent was able to grope and fondle the genitals of male passengers he found attractive. The plan involved him signalling to a colleague who was working the scanning computer. That agent would tell the computer that the individual being scanned was female, which apparently would set off an "anomaly" alert for the groin area, allowing the male TSA agent to conduct a "pat down" of that area. Leaving aside the fact that these computers even have "male" and "female" settings and it can determine an "anomaly in the genital area" if they don't match -- this kind of thing was exactly what many insisted was going to happen when the TSA put in place these advanced screening procedures. And if you think that this is the only case of it happening, well, then, you probably think the TSA doesn't rifle through and steal stuff from your luggage as well.Now here's the thing: this only came out because the TSA agent blabbed about it to a colleague, who then reported it, leading to an investigation. Many people find it odd that the two TSA agents (who are still unnamed) merely lost their jobs, rather than got arrested for this activity. Chris Bray, over at TSA News (found via Amy Alkon -- herself no stranger to intrusive TSA searches), went and grabbed the actual Denver police report on the incident, revealing that it appears that the TSA set up its "investigation" in a manner to almost guarantee no criminal charges and that the names of the TSA agents would remain secret.
Specifically, the TSA was first told about this scheme on November 18th of 2014. First, it took nearly two months for the TSA to do anything about it, and it did not contact the police during this time. Instead, on Feburary 9th, TSA investigator Chris Higgins observed the screening area and saw the signal/button push/grope of the genitals. Higgins made no attempt to speak with or identify the victim of this assault (this is important). Instead, he just spoke with the two TSA agents who were terminated at some later time (exact date not clearly indicated). The Denver police were not told about any of this until over a month later, on March 19th, 2015, at which point they noted that without a named "victim" there wasn't much they could do.
On that same day, the inspector, Higgins, told the Denver police that he had also spoken with a deputy district attorney who had told him that without a victim, it was unlikely they could prosecute a case. It's unclear when that conversation took place, but it appears that the TSA had plenty of time to fire the TSA agents and make it basically impossible for the police to file a case before then telling the police what happened. As Bray notes, this all seems rather suspicious, as if the TSA's "investigation" was much more about covering up the TSA's misdeeds, rather than holding the agents responsible:
Isn't that convenient?So in November of 2014, the TSA was warned that two of its officers were currently, actively conspiring to commit sexual assault. But the TSA did not notify the police about that anonymous tip. The Denver Police Department is the agency that regularly polices Denver International Airport; the DIA Bureau is listed on this directory.
If the TSA had notified the police about the tip in November, the police could have been watching the checkpoint to observe the groping incident that was instead witnessed by a TSA employee. But the police didn’t know about an allegation of active, current, ongoing sexual assault, because the TSA didn’t tell them.
And so an act of sexual assault occurred right in front of a TSA investigator — and the investigator let the victim walk away without approaching him and identifying him.
Then, in March 2015, the TSA informed the police of the allegation, and of the evidence of the event that a TSA investigator had personally witnessed more than a month before. But the TSA didn’t notify the police until both employees had been fired — in other words, until both participants in a scheme to commit sexual assault had been removed from the place in which they allegedly committed it.
It’s as if someone called the fire department to report a pile of cold ashes. The TSA waited to call the police until the passengers were long gone, the TSA officers alleged to have committed the crime were long gone, and the crime witnessed by a TSA investigator was more than a month old.
Bray asked the TSA why it didn't contact the police earlier, and received a boiler plate response about how "intolerable" the actions were, but no substantive response to Bray's actual questions.
Yes, the groping scheme is a scandal, but it seems like a much bigger scandal is how the TSA handled the case -- first allowing the criminal activities to go on for two months without notifying police, and then making sure that no one could be actually charged with a crime.
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Filed Under: assault, denver, denver police, groping, prosecution, tsa
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anonymous tip
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Re: anonymous tip
If you are going to expose wrongdoing,
protect yourself.
Make sure there are at least several possible
sources of your information, preferably MANY.
Blab to a media outlet or some outside entity
that you can trust. Let THEM do the Heavy Lifting.
Never tell ANYONE what you did,
not your wife, not your kids, not ANYONE.
If they accuse you, be a very good liar.
DENY,DENY,DENY.
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Typo
I think you meant to say, "massage the genitals of male fondlers"
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This sounds like the beginnings of TSA gay erotica.
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Re: This sounds like the beginnings of TSA gay erotica.
The dark-haired passenger approached the scanner warily, taking cat-like steps and looking around him. Jim waited, his pulse racing as he took in the chiseled jaw and piercing blue eyes. The tall, muscular man had no choice but to enter the scanner. Jim's right hand was trembling, moist with sweat. He licked his lips.
I'll leave the rest to whoever wants to continue the story.
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Re: Re:
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http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-victims-denver-airport-groping-scandal-2015 0415-story.html
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And TSA means
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Re: And TSA means
I have been saying that for a long time.
Or you can say...
the TSA stands for a "Tactical Sexual Assault" for all members of the public to enjoy.
the TSA is a standing example of just how easy it is to get a public to give up its Liberty.
Humanity... just like being evil, the majority are cowards.
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Re: And TSA means
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The TSA is doing a good job, carry on
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Obstruction
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Re: Obstruction
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Re: Obstruction
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Re: Re: Obstruction
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Re: Re: Re: Obstruction
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Re: Obstruction
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same boss
We're left with YouTube justice.
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Re:
The good news is, unless re-hired by the TSA (which I suppose is a reasonable possibility), the likelihood of being put into a position in which they are able to conspire to grope people this easily seems low.
I would assume their next job will be in law enforcement...
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TSA == rent-a-cop
Doubtful. From what I can tell, being a TSA agent is little different from being a rent-a-cop: it's what people who want to be cops, but can't, do.
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Security video retention?
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Re: Security video retention?
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Re: Re: Security video retention?
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Re: Re: Re: Security video retention?
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Re: Re: Security video retention?
The DVRs/NVRs of today will "reuse" the hard disk space and thus overwrite the oldest data. The question becomes how much hard disk space is available on each installation. With the number of cameras in a typical airport it is possible for a DVR/NVR to have only 30 days - or less - available for recording. And if any portion gets marked for archiving the hard disk space goes down: the DVR/NVR will not use that space until a human unmarks it.
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Re: Re: Re: Security video retention?
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Re: Re: Security video retention?
There is only "no video available" as long as it's one of the TSA in trouble. If it were you or I (aka, The Sheep, The Little People) you can can bet your ass that a video of you doing/being something wrong at an airport or (God forbid) *to* a TSA agent would be available YEARS after the event, in order to fully prosecute (control, intimidate) any member of the public for even the slightest infraction of "terrorism" laws.
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Incorrect method
As someone that insists on getting a patdown instead of using the scanners, and flying quite a bit in the last few years, I would have said something to this guy if this happened to me. I've heard the spiel a hundred times, and experienced many variations of the "patdown" procedure. Most male TSA agents are uncomfortable doing the patdown, and it's obvious. Some are fine with it, but they do it properly (although occasionally rough)...
I have never had a guy use his palms though - and they even tell you they use the back of their hands.
Maybe if more people opted for the patdowns and reported incorrectly done procedures, we'd be keeping these guys honest. The scanners give everyone the false sense of "privacy", while the unfortunate (and clueless) people who get selected for patdown are subjected to these criminals who know they can get away with it.
I see it as my civil duty to avoid the scanners, and force the TSA to do their jobs properly.
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Re: Incorrect method
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Re: Re: Incorrect method
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Sounds familiar...
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Maybe He Enjoyed It!
/s
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Re: Maybe He Enjoyed It!
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Sue Groping TSA Agents
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TSA
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TSA
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Re: TSA
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Re: Re: TSA
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TSA Groping and Thieving.
Different TSA Democrats are stealing. But, the ones who are feeling cocks aren't stealing right then. It keeps some TSA more interested in scrotums and testicles than stealing, part of the time??
I think that is pretty close to the moral of the story.
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TSA Gropers
Most frequent fliers long ago realized that if this group was our best defense against flying with bad guys then we were in trouble.
In their early days I had them steal from me in plain sight and then deny it. I also had them damage my property only to have claims filed and ignored.
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Been saying this for years
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Re: Been saying this for years
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Another Freikorps-style paramilitary group that has decided they are above the law.
It does raise my curiosity about how difficult it is to impersonate a TSA officer for the sake of engaging in mischief undetected, whether it's feeling up strangers, looting their stuff, causing air-traffic delays or even facilitating acts of terror.
Food for thought for my next Sundance Film Festival entry.
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Criminal Conspiracy
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Re: Criminal Conspiracy
I take, by the same logic then, you think that the mainstream straight community endorses sexual assault on women, and letting male TSA agents grope female passengers to their satisfaction?
You've got issues, dude.
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Re: Criminal Conspiracy
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False security
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TSA Perverts
Are we supposed to take the word of a federal agency that has a track record of deceit and lying?
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TSA GROPING
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Re: TSA GROPING
I don't know if I'm the only one, but I just stop reading and hit "report" when I see stupid stuff like this. You don't agree with him, I don't agree with him, but intentionally misspelling his name is dumb and childish. Just had to vent.
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B.O. and whining cry-babies.
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You seem like a "Kenyan Muslim Terrorist" sort of Obama-hater...
If anything Obama isn't a dolt. He's hypocritical at his own convenience, pragmatic to the point of ruthlessness, advocates for policies that betray fundamental principles of the Bill of Rights, and is entirely owned by the big monies that financed his campaigns, but he is neither unintelligent nor ignorant, and to suggest so weakens not only your the credibility but anyone associated with you, e.g. anonymous commenters on the internet.
Obama isn't the first president to show a disparity between his attitude when campaigning and then when acting as President. Bush campaigned as a compassionate conservative before proceeding to set up all the policies that we now have to deal with today, such as the TSA, mass surveillance, extrajudicial detainment and torture, Halliburton's big war profiteering bonanza, employing mercenaries as standard practice, and so on.
But I don't think we can, at this point, get any president who can take any major steps towards a better America without centralizing more and more power. We're turning back into a feudalistic empire of the middle ages, only without any notion of noblesse oblige, or that we peasants have any real value. Every president from here on out is going to be a more-of-the-degenerating-status-quo kinda guy.
But I guess so long as you have someone to blame for your woes, you'll be happy.
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Re: B.O. and whining cry-babies.
The sort who didn't vote for him in 2012, or the sort who prefers honest debate and conversation over name calling and illogic?
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Yes means yes!
I mean, seriously, false rape accusations are rampant and ruin lives but these TSA thugs can sexually assault anyone they choose with impunity.
If the law won't protect citizens against sexual assault then it's time for citizens to take matters into their own hands. If a TSA agent fondles you, then engage in civil disobedience by knocking them the fsck out!
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Re: Yes means yes!
And if you thought the grope was bad, wait for the fucking you're then gonna get in prison!
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I always ask for a female screener when we go off to find out why I alarm their radar. They never ever oblige. Racist, sexist homophobes that they are. :)
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Re:
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Feds cop a feel
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TSA
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Bullets In The Skulls of TSA DOGSH!T
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TSA
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Perhaps we need Constitutional Amendment that grants the States first choice of who conducts an investigation when the person or group being investigated is a Federal employee or agency.
As liberals have pointed out many many many times before! A police department can not be trusted to honestly investigate the misconduct of one of their own.
If thats the case, the same should hold true for the Federal government. To allow someone like Holder to decide whether to prosecute one of his own is like allowing a bank robber to decide whether his actions were a robbery or just a new form of withdrawal!
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Re:
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It's really hard to call anything at that time "bipartisan"
Frankly it doesn't matter. The US as a whole was terrified when we created the TSA, not knowing the extent of the terror campaign against us, or how easy it was to exploit our airline system.
The attack worked. We were afraid and everyone voted recklessly, and now that emergency powers have been centralized it's become impossible to nullify them or return them to the people.
And that's how we're here. The US is bleeding out, and it may take a while before it fully collapses and transforms.
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Re:
This is categorically untrue. The TSA behaved this way from the very start. If anything, they've become slightly better in the last few years, as they made some weak attempts to get people to stop hating them.
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hire him again. Probably in Phoenix.
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Re: Re: It's One Big Club
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Re: Annie's Insightful Comment.
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OUTRAGEOUS PAT DOWN!
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I can barely tell the difference...
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Recruited by ads on Pizza Boxes
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TSA
America's biggest threat is our OWN government!
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Welcome aboard the Hippie UFO crackpot train.
Get used to being confused with lizardmen conspiracy theorists, UFO conspiracy theorists, HAARP conspiracy theorists and Grassy Knoll conspiracy theorists. This is normal.
Watch your spelling and grammar. Nothing gets you dismissed like overeager ranting.
Welcome!
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