Guys, I have really exciting news to share with you no later than Tuesday. I do believe this will be the end of the nude body scanner program. If you’re not already following/subscribed, now is the time to do so. Please stay tuned…
Kicked out of RSW! The Double Opt-Out, Part III… Plus New Suit Filed
After filing my new lawsuit against the TSA for kicking me out of FLL airport 6 months ago, I went to RSW airport in hopes of having a nude body scanner-free travel experience to see my little sister get married. I got half way through a pat down before the screener realized that he wouldn’t be able to complete the pat down without “touching my junk.”
RSW used to be a safe airport, but unfortunately, RSW installed nude body scanners about 2 weeks ago. 😦 I was completely unaware (which is unusual ;)), and quite disappointed to turn a corner and see an L3 ATD millimeter wave device.
As per usual, I opted out, and the screener gives me the run down about what he’s going to do using “TSA-speak” (“use the back of my hands…”, “…meet resistance…”, etc.). I asked the TSA screener if that meant he’d be “touching my junk,” and he re-explained using TSA-speak. I then asked again, “Sooo… you’re going to be touching my junk?” and he thinks for a few seconds and, somewhat embarassed, conceeds, “Yeah, basically.” I tell him I won’t consent to touching my genitals, and will have to file a police report if he does.
Naturally, he calls over a supervisor, who gives me the same monologue. I repeat that I consent as long as he won’t be touching my genitals, and she tells me that she can call over a police officer to make sure that doesn’t happen. Mildly impressed that maybe I’d be able to watch my little sister walk down the aisle, I wait and within a couple minutes, a cop labeled “APD” (assuming Airport Police Department?) comes by, asks me if I have anything illegal (do people really say “yes” to that even if they do?), and the screener begins the pat-down by touching my hair. My hair, mind you, is about 2 inches long, but no matter.
He gets down to the waist area and then explains again to me the TSA speak. He demonstrates on his own body by putting his hands backwards at his belt about an inch apart and running them down from belt to thigh. I ask him how he intends to do that without touching my genitals, at which point an STSO stops him and tells me “we’re done” and that I’ll be escorted out.
So, there you have it, if there was any doubt left that TOUCHING YOUR GENITALS IS A MANDATORY PART OF THE TSA PAT DOWN SEARCH.
Working hard to continue the court stuff and more. This abuse has got to go, and now I’ve got to try and find a way to my little sister.
[Edit – One more thing. The STSO literally stole my boarding pass from me. She asked for my ID, which I refused to give her, and then said “fine, I’ll just take your boarding pass.” I never got it back. I may amend my lawsuit to add more Privacy Act claims regarding this, especially since I don’t have to wait for the 6 month FTCA notice period to lapse before I can go after them for that.]
–Jon
New Suit in the TSA’s Favorite: US District Court :)
The TSA says that anything they write down is an “order” and above the jurisdiction of the District Courts.
Unfortunately for them, I think they might have forgot to write in their SOP that their new policy allows for false arrest, forcible searches, retaliatory searches, breaking federal recordkeeping laws, obstruction of justice, etc. — the claims in my new lawsuit from the day they kicked me out of FLL airport. I’m posting this public draft to you guys 2 days before I file it on Friday, so if you have any feedback, let me know! You don’t have to be a lawyer to help make my writing clearer, more powerful, and more likely to hit the TSA hard.
Corbett v. TSA – Public Draft (.pdf)
This suit really throws the book at them, quite carefully and with big thanks to the NYPD for forcing me to do the research on false arrests over the last several months. This 16-page, 21-count complaint charges the TSA along with Broward County for:
– A 4th Amendment violation for false arrest
– A 4th Amendment violation for reading my credit cards (no weapons in there, TSA!)
– A 4th Amendment violation for reading my books (no weapons there either, TSA!)
– A 4th Amendment violation for conducting a search in a retaliatory fashion
– A violation of the Civil Rights Act
– Assault
– False arrest (a state-law charge, in addition to the Constitutional claim)
– Falsely portraying me as a criminal in front of hundreds of passers-by
– Intentional infliction of emotional distress
– Failing to meet federal record data collection and record keeping requirements… 7 times
– Failing to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request
– Failing to truthfully respond to a Freedom of Information Act request (Broward)
– Conspiracy between the TSA and Broward for trying to hide the checkpoint video
– Running a warrant check without reasonable suspicion by non-consensually taking my ID (Broward)
If the TSA wants to stay out of District Court, they’re going to have to train their pizza box employees to abuse only within the limits of the SOP. 😉
This suit is new suit in addition to the petition I will file in the Supreme Court. This suit will not change the scope & grope policies, but it will make them be a little nicer while sexually harassing us and think twice before ordering you around. This suit (mostly) asks for large money damages rather than injunctive relief — and every dollar they pay for this suit is one less dollar they have to pay for a body scanner and one more dollar I have towards fighting scope & grope. 🙂 This suit will be entirely self-funded, and any of you who have or will donate should know that 100% of your donations will be applied to the petition to the Supreme Court to end scope & grope for all of us.
Looking forward to Friday!
Appeal Denied — US District Courts Have No Jurisdiction Over TSA, No Right to Trial By Jury
Sadly, the judgment of the District Court in dismissing my case for lack of jurisdiction was affirmed today by a 3 judge panel at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, in a decision that effectively states that Americans have no right to a jury trial when challenging their government.
Corbett v. US – Affirmed (.pdf)
The result of this decision is that virtually no policy made by the TSA can be challenged in U.S. District Court, which means that the TSA completely evades trial-by-jury and my right to gather and present evidence. The 11th Circuit ignores the discussion of a jury, and finds solitude in the fact that if I made my challenge in the Court of Appeals, they “may” allow me discovery, hearings, etc., but this wholly misses the point: my right to a fair jury trial complete with discovery, evidence, and witnesses are not given to me at the discretion of an appellate judge, but rather taken as a right I was born with as an American citizen.
I will be filing a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court as soon as practicable.
–Jon
Underwear Bomber Victim: US Government Intentionally Allowed Bomb on Plane
Guys, this post is important. The TSA, in its media propaganda and legal arguments, has repeatedly justified the nude body scanner and pat-down molestation program with the Christmas 2009 “Underwear Bomber” attack, in which a man boarded a Detroit-bound flight from Amsterdam with an explosive that failed to fully ignite when he tried to detonate it over US soil.
At the sentencing hearing for the terrorist, one of the victims on that flight is adamant that this man was allowed on to the plane intentionally by US authorities, either with hopes of tracking him to accomplices (just like Fast & Furious), or in his opinion, he was provided the defective bomb and sent on that plane to scare us into accepting the nude body scanner program.
Please read his statement, which is in full here:
I wish to thank the Court for allowing me these 5 minutes to make my statement. My references to the government in this statement refer to the Federal Government excluding this Court and the prosecution. On Christmas Day 2009, my wife and I were returning from an African safari and had a connecting flight through Amsterdam. As we waited for our flight, we sat on the floor next to the boarding gate. What I witnessed while sitting there and subsequent events have changed my life forever. While I sat there, I witnessed Umar dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt, being escorted around security by a man in a tan suit who spoke perfect American English and who aided Umar in boarding without a passport. The airline gate worker initially refused Umar boarding until the man in the tan suit intervened. The event meant nothing to me at the time. Little did I know that Umar would try to kill me a few hours later as our flight approached Detroit. The final 10 minutes of our flight after the attack were the worst minutes of my life. During those 10 minutes I sat paralyzed in fear. Unfortunately, what happened next has had an even greater impact on my life and has saddened me further.
When we landed, I was shocked that our plane taxied up to the gate. I was further shocked that we were forced to sit on the plane for 20 minutes with powder from the so called bomb all over the cabin. The officers that boarded the plane did nothing to ensure our safety and did not check for accomplices or other explosive devices. Several passengers trampled through parts of the bomb as they exited the plane. We were then taken into the terminal with our unchecked carry on bags. Again, there was no concern for our safety even though Umar told the officers that there was another bomb on board as he exited the plane. I wondered why nobody was concerned about our safety, accomplices or other bombs and the lack of concern worried me greatly. I immediately told the FBI my story in order to help catch the accomplice I had seen in Amsterdam. It soon became obvious that the FBI wasn’t interested in what I had to say, which upset me further. For one month the government refused to admit the existence of the man in the tan suit before changing course and admitting his existence in an ABC News article on January 22, 2010. That was the last time the government talked about this man. The video that would prove the truth of my account has never been released. I continue to be emotional upset that the video has not been released. The Dutch police, meanwhile, in this article (show article), also confirmed that Umar did not show his passport in Amsterdam which also meant that he didn’t go through security as both are in the same line in Amsterdam. It upsets me that the government refuses to admit this fact.
I became further saddened from this case, when Patrick Kennedy of the State Department during Congressional hearings, admitted that Umar was a known terrorist, was being followed, and the U.S. allowed him into the U.S. so that it could catch Umar’s accomplices. I was once again shocked and saddened when Michael Leiter of the National Counter terrorism Center admitted during these same hearings that intentionally letting terrorists into the U.S. was a frequent practice of the U.S. Government. I cannot fully explain my sadness, disappointment and fear when I realized that my government allowed an attack on me intentionally.
During this time, I questioned if my country intentionally put a known terrorist onto my flight with a live bomb. I had many sleepless nights over this issue. My answer came shortly thereafter. In late 2010, the FBI admitted to giving out intentionally defective bombs to the Portland Christmas Tree Bomber,the Wrigley Field Bomber and several others. Further, Mr. Chambers was quoted in the Free Press on January 11, 2011 when he indicated that the government’s own explosives experts had indicated that Umar’s bomb was impossibly defective. I wondered how that could be. Certainly, I thought, Al Qaeda wouldn’t go through all of the trouble to plan such an attack only to provide the terrorist with an impossibly defective bomb.
I attended nearly all of the pretrial hearings. At the hearing on January 28, 2011, I was greatly disappointed by the prosecution’s request to block evidence from Mr. Chambers “as it could then be able to be obtained by third parties, who could use it in a civil suit against the government”. It really bothered me that the government apparently was admitting to wrongdoing of some kind as it admitted that it was concerned it would be sued. It further upset me to know that the government was putting its own interests ahead of those of the passengers.
When I attended the jury selection hearings, I questioned why versions of the same two questions kept coming up, those being:
1. Do you think whether you’ll be able to tell whether something is actually a bomb? and
2. Do you realize that sometimes the media doesn’t always tell the truth?I continued to be greatly saddened at this point as I felt the truth continued to be hidden.
When Umar listed me as his only witness, I was happy to testify, not on his behalf, but on behalf of the truth. I never expected to testify, as my eyewitness account would have been too damaging to the myth that the government and media are putting forward. A mere 5 days after I was announced as a witness, there was an inexplicable guilty plea which exasperated me as I no longer would be testifying.
In closing I will just say that regardless of how the media and government try to shape the public perception of this case, I am convinced that Umar was given an intentionally defective bomb by a U.S. Government agent and placed on our flight without showing a passport or going through security, to stage a false terrorist attack to be used to implement various government policies.
The effect this matter has had on my life has been astounding and due to this case, I will never trust the government in any matter, ever.
In regards to sentencing, nothing I’ve said excuses the fact that Umar tried to kill me. He has waived his valid claim to the entrapment defense. Umar, you are not a great Muslim martyr, you are merely a “Patsy”. I ask the court to impose the mandatory sentence.
Source: http://haskellfamily.blogspot.com/2012/02/victim-impact-statement.html
If either of the two scenarios that involve the US allowing this man on the plane are true, this fraud makes Fast & Furious look innocuous in comparison. The government has given us no reason to do anything but believe this man. Airports are full of cameras, and the “man in the tan suit” could easily be confirmed or denied. The failure to deny is a deafening silence.
–Jon
TSA Re-Names SecOps Center to — Get This — “Freedom Center”
This happened several months ago, but I think it was quietly enough that no one noticed:
On June 21, TSA’s primary operational hub was re-named the Freedom Center, symbolizing the agency’s commitment to protecting the nation’s transportation systems against terrorist threats
Source: http://www.tsa.gov/press/speeches/freedom_dedication.shtm
You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. The TSA stands for the exact opposite of freedom: “securing” our nation by giving up our freedoms at airports and, increasingly, train stations, subways, bus stations, and highways. One has to question whether the TSA management has read Orwell and is applying it intentionally. But, one would first have to question whether TSA management can read.
Disgusted.
–Jon
Amended Complaint against NYPD Ready, New TSA Complaint on 3/2
While my original 10 page complaint against the NYPD was sufficient to get my foot in the door, my new 15 page, 56 count complaint should light a fire under the city’s ass for sure.
The biggest challenge in suing the government (any government) as far as writing the complaint is naming the correct parties. For some claims, you need to name the city, and others, the official him/herself. Complaints the TSA are even more complex, as sometimes you need to name the TSA, sometimes the official, and other times the United States. This legal subterfuge is required even though no matter who I name, it’s the city that will pay the settlement or judgment in the end.
My NYPD case had been challenged by the fact that the city, thus far, cannot “find” the officers who illegally detained and searched me. Despite having some of the best detectives in the world, when it comes to investigating themselves, they seem to have a bit of trouble.
The problem isn’t that the case can’t move forward against the city even if they can’t find the officers, but that all of the charges that require me to name the official would be dismissed if we can’t name them, which would very much limit the suit. The solution: name the commissioner. 🙂 Ray Kelly has presided over the great expansion of the stop-and-frisk abuse, and his actions and inactions are responsible for what happened to me. As such, he’s an official I can name, and even if the four unnamed cops are dismissed from the case, the charges that require a named official may proceed against Mr. Kelly.
My amended complaint is below, and keep an eye out for my new TSA complaint coming in less than 2 weeks!
Corbett v. City of New York – First Amended Complaint with Exhibits (.pdf)
Confirmed: TSA Declares Checkpoint Tapes “SSI”
The County, who initially denied the existance of checkpoint security tapes from the day I was ejected from a TSA security checkpoint at FLL, and I have been going back and forth about the releasability of the security cameras. Despite the fact that the TSA regularly releases security cameras footage as a result of formal or informal requests:
Woman brought to tears by TSA (At same airport! Uploaded by the TSA’s official account!)
TSA illegaly detains US Sen. Rand Paul at checkpoint
Andrea Abbott arrested for being upset about the TSA molesting her daughter
TSA separates family from little boy (Uploaded by the TSA’s official account)
Protester walks through TSA checkpoint in his underwear
…the video of me going through the checkpoint is “Sensitive Security Information” (SSI) and unreleasable, the TSA has told the County.
Well, guess what? Broward County has earned a spot as a co-defendant in the lawsuit that will be filed on February 29th, 2012. All levels of government need to understand that if they help the TSA do illegal things, it is conspiracy and they will be charged as such.
–Jon
Update: Broward County Has Cameras, But No Video
Broward County has now confirmed for me that they own the security cameras, despite telling me that they are in possession of no video taken on the date and time in question. Then they added in this gem:
“Additionally, even if they did exist, we have been informed by the TSA that this particular information (security camera recordings) is … SSI.”
Broward County has some explaining to do. Do these cameras not actually record? Do videos exist, but they are denying their existance because of their (false) belief that they constitute SSI? (SSI is a designation internal to the TSA; a third party’s records cannot be SSI.) Have the videos now been disgarded?
…and I have some research to do: If a third party destroys evidence after being notified of the necessity to preserve evidence, what is their liability?
TSA: What Security Cameras?
I’m sure most of you today read the big news about the TSA detaining U.S. Sen. Rand Paul. Surely Rand will wish to obtain a copy of the video footage of this incident, but like most who have requested checkpoint footage, it’s likely that footage simply “won’t exist.”
The TSA is finishing preparing (redacting) its reply to my FOIA request from the day the TSA detained me at FLL airport, but it has unofficially informed me that its reply will contain no video footage. Broward County, the owner of the airport, similarly said it has no video footage. Which is funny, because I distinctly remember waiving to a video camera as I exited the terminal.
So, who, exactly, owns these cameras?
We’ll find out soon.
–Jon
Professional Troublemaker ® 