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TSA erred in delaying fallen Marines escorts
OCEANSIDE, Calif. It seems miscommunication is to blame for last weeks security mix-up that delayed a trio of leathernecks escorting the body of a fallen Marine through the Philadelphia airport. The sergeant and two corporals were escorting the body of Sgt. Lea R. Mills, who was, like them, a member of the Camp Pendleton-based 3rd Assault Amphibian Battalion, to Mills family in Gulfport, Miss., on May 3 when they were taken over to secondary screening at the Philadelphia International Airport. It was there where the Marines were taken to a nearby room by Transportation Security Administration agents and told to remove their blue dress coat, belt and shoes. According to a TSA official, military escorts usually follow a different set of screening procedures. They did not follow these procedures, said Darrin Kayser, a TSA spokesman in Northern Virginia, told Marine Corps Times on May 8. I think in this instance, there was definitely some miscommunication, Kayser added. According to Kayser, TSA has special screening guidelines in place for service members who are accompanying the bodies of fallen service members to their families for burial. These guidelines reflect the agency's utmost respect for those who have lost their lives in service to this country, their families, and those who bring them home with honor, TSA officials said in a statement provided by Kayser. We sincerely regret any inconvenience that Marines from the 1st [Marine] Division experienced during the screening process at Philadelphia International Airport, the statement said. We take their concerns very seriously and have communicated directly with Marine Corps leadership. Kayser said that provisions are intended to help smooth the process. It is a fairly regular occurrence, unfortunately, that we have soldiers coming through with remains. There is a process in place that they should follow. Its likely the three escorts, who had come from their Camp Pendleton base to accompany the casket from Dover Air Force Base, Del., werent aware of the special rules. The Marines had gone through the security line to reach their flight that would take them to Houston and then onto Gulfport, and they wanted to ensure that Mills body was properly placed on the airplane, said Sgt. John Stock, speaking by phone on May 5. Stock, who was accompanied by Cpls. Aaron Bigalk and Jason Schadeburg, all wearing their dress uniforms, had expected that they would zip through the screening process. But, they were stopped by several TSA agents, who instructed each Marine to remove their dress blue uniform blouse, belt and black dress shoes before scanning them with a metal detector. The agents then scanned the Marines with hand-held detecting wands. Then, they were taken to a nearby room, where TSA workers patted them down. All of us. We all got searched, Stock said. Under TSAs rules, military escorts are screened at a separate checkpoint, Kayser said, adding that he would not specify the security procedures. The agencys procedures have been in place for some time and are known to the military services and federal security officers at the airports, Kayser said. We have a federal security director at the airport who will (liaison) with the military, he added. For escorts who stay with a casket, TSA sends security officers to their location for screening and does not require those escorts to go through the regular passenger checkpoint, the statement said. If escorts elect to travel through the regular checkpoint, we conduct our usual screening, sensitive to any special needs that may be presented. Miss-communication my ass. Complete idiots is more my guess. Posted by: Deacon Blues 2006-06-28 |
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