Agents search the carry-on bags of Hartsfield Jackson passengers without getting warrants and seize money without making arrests

[Demovictory9]

https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2023/10/19/plane-sight-drug-agents-searching-passengers-cash-airport-gates/

In Plane Sight: Drug agents searching passengers for cash at airport gates
Agents search the carry-on bags of Hartsfield Jackson passengers without getting warrants and seize money without making arrests

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - That passenger standing next to you at the departure gate may actually be a plain-clothes drug agent.

Atlanta News First Investigates recently tailed U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) task force officers as they walked, otherwise unnoticed, from gate to gate at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. We watched them search passengers right after they scanned their boarding passes.

“He just approached me, and he asked me for my ID,” film director Tabari Sturdivant said. “He didn’t state who he was. He just asked me for ID, and I thought he was a Delta agent. He had airport credentials on, and so I gave it to him immediately.”

Sturdivant was flying to Los Angeles for a film project last year when he was approached by the DEA task force officers. They searched his bag in front of the other passengers boarding the flight, according to video recorded by an onlooker.

[questionseverything]

1. Dea busy stealing money from honest people

While the fentanyl epidemic explodes

[A HERETIC I AM]

2. Scumbags.

Tell them NO! I already went through a security check, and I do not consent to any searches. Leave me the fuck alone.

The warrantless seizing of cash (and other assets, for that matter) in this country is one of the biggest scams ever perpetrated on the populace by the cops. It is literal robbery under the color of law.

[hlthe2b]

3. While I agree this is an abuse of power & theft (in many cases), why carry $$$$ in your carry on?

I cannot imagine carrying large sums of cash on me. (assuming I had it to begin with). Surely you could have money electronically transferred to a bank in LA if that was the issue.

Well, maybe if I ever have money to burn, I'll understand.

[Chainfire]

4. Some of us still use cash for transactions. If I were going on vacation, I would take some cash.

To the best of my knowledge, that is not a criminal act.

[hlthe2b]

7. Of course. But a few hundred dollars is apparently not what they are referring to.

[Chainfire]

25. So what is the magic number that transfroms you from honest citizen to criminal? $1000, $5,000?

Should Federal agents have the legal authority to make those decisions on the fly? When did guilty until proven innocent become the law of the land?

[hlthe2b]

28. Really? You know better. My subject line clearly stated this "is an abuse of power and theft."

So, do you want to join in the cyberbullying on this subthread for the crime of asking a sincere curious, and rhetorical question? Am I the only person who is concerned about being robbed carrying that kind of money? I don't deserve the attacks and you know that.

What has gotten into some posters this morning?

[Chainfire]

32. What attack? My attack was on the policy, not the messenger.

Perhaps you should pose your question to yourself?

[stuck in the middle]

45. I always thought it was $10,000

So what is the magic number that transfroms you from honest citizen to criminal? $1000, $5,000?

[DFW]

37. For a while in East Texas, there was a sherriff who was stealing the cash of everyone he stopped

He was written up in a few national news magazines, and still didn't get arrested until years later.

Since we live in Europe, and immensely dislike credit cards--call us old-fashioned--, and the follow-up bookkeeping that is necessary if we come to North America for four or six weeks, we usually bring $8000 or $9000 in cash with us. It's just easier. Both our relatives, my U.S. offices, and most hotels have safes. It's our business if we find this easier than tracking credit card charges all over the place, and besides, the credit card companies always call us every time we make a purchase with a credit card in some oddball place to make sure it's not fraudulent (i.e. why is someone living in Düsseldorf buying a restaurant meal in Charleston?).

Taking friends and family out to dinner, buying presents, tips, so what? That doesn't enroll us in the Sinaloa Cartel. I sure would protest if some larcenous TSA agent at the Atlanta airport felt like appropriating money I legally own, and worked all year for. Yeah, I'd absolutely raise a stink--like with Jon Ossoff, for example! Not everyone has him on speed-dial? OK, fair enough. But some of us do, and if there's some way to visually distinguish the difference, I'm sure I don't know what that is. I would hope the dirty TSA thief would quickly find himself either transferred to the airport on Kodiak Island or else behind bars awaiting trial. To us, the question is not "why would anyone have that much cash?" but rather, "whose business is it if we do?" What's with the whole jealousy/money obsession, anyway? It's legal, we have documents to prove it, and no law in the USA authorizes a person wearing a uniform to commit grand larceny just because they feel like it.

[usedtobedemgurl]

5. Isn't this a sort of victim blaming?

Why was she wearing that short skirt/having that 4th drink/out without her boyfriend/flirting with a stranger when she got raped.

It is funny, as much as I am a rape survivor advocate, I always said you don’t see people asking the questions they do of survivors. When someone’s car is stolen, the person is not asked what they were wearing or their sexual history, but I guess I have to change that now. Sometimes when someone has cash stolen from them, they are carrying large
amounts of cash. I’ll throw in that they were asking for it. You did not say that, but isn’t it kind of like saying they were asking for it? If not, please explain why you say what you did. It does not matter if someone has $1, $100 or $1,000 on them, this should not happen to anyone.

Here, I will fix it for you: why would anyone have that much cash on them? I don’t know and frankly, I don’t care. In any crime, the victim/survivor can pretty much do as they please, as long as it is not illegal, and this should never happen in our country. I don’t have that much money, but if I did, it would be good to know I am at least safe from the cops in this country, if not all criminals. I cannot believe this is happening in the US.

You are welcome.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

9. The first cop to abolish is the one in your head.

[hlthe2b]

10. WhiskeyGrinder, I stated this is an abuse of power and you attack me for asking a simple question

as to why people might carry large sums of cash in a check in rather than just do bank transfers? Really?

And claim I have a "cop in head?" WTF? I don't deserve that and you KNOW it.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

13. I'm sorry it came across as an attack.

It's a jocular phrase I use here and elsewhere that is meant to convey an idea of "people have their reasons that having nothing to do with you; what if you let them move through this world without having to answer to you or the state," but that clearly didn't come across here.

Who cares why people carry large amounts of money? Starting from a place of "I wouldn't, why do they?" makes it really easy to move to "I wouldn't, why should they?" to "I wouldn't, they're probably doing something wrong." Letting people do legal things that you wouldn't without wondering about it is very freeing.

ETA: We all have cops in our heads; society puts them there and makes us feel like we have a right to control other people. Abolishing that cop -- whether it worries about people carrying cash or loitering under a streetlight or using apostrophes wrong -- is hard work, but it's worth it.

[hlthe2b]

14. So you are never curious about things and ask a rhetorical question? Really?

[WhiskeyGrinder]

15. When it involves a private person's business that has nothing to do with me and can be used by the state to invade their privacy?

I work to avoid it.

[hlthe2b]

16. It was NOT a private person question. IT WAS RHETORICAL. What is it about that you don't understand?

[muriel_volestrangler]

18. How are DUers meant to know which of your questions are rhetorical,

and to which therefore you don't expect (or, it seems, welcome) an answer, and which are straightforward questions? This, by the way, is a straightforward question. An answer would be welcome.

[hlthe2b]

20. You are being ridiculous. Ignore

Maybe if you look up the word rhetorical it would help you.

[muriel_volestrangler]

39. "asked in order to produce an effect or to make a statement rather than to elicit information"

that's the definition of "rhetorical question". If you really did put me on ignore, this is just here for completeness.

[AllyCat]

43. Goodness, not sure what the beef is with any of these responses.

Last edited Sun Oct 22, 2023, 09:17 AM - Edit history (1)

Poster must be having a rough day. Hope it improves.

[WhiskeyGrinder]

21. More "why would someone carry that much cash" instead of "why did that person carry that much cash"?

Eh, same same. I can come up with 10 reasons why a person might carry $30,000 on a plane. But why should I? A person doesn't need a reason to do so, so I don't need to come up with reasons for them; people have their own reasons. It's a big world.

[hlthe2b]

22. THen you had nothing to add and thus had no reason to respond.

except you wanted to attack me. Cyberbullying seems to be the thing now for many. Is it for you?

[WhiskeyGrinder]

23. My responses are clearly not landing in the way I'm intending, so I'll disembark here.

I hope you have a good weekend.

[Attilatheblond]

31. Reading thru comments here, is sure seems like EVERYONE is entitled to your opinion

or they are attacking you. Does that work well on any message board? Just asking a rhetorical question here, doncha know.

Allowing for others to have different opinion, often based on their own experiences or observations is gonna happen here on Earth One. Refusing to allow for differing opinions, especially without knowing the WHY of someone else's lives or practices is taking one really silly leap right over actual logic.

[edisdead]

11. it is unconstitutional. Full stop.

No need for any other aconversation.

[hlthe2b]

12. I said that. Full stop. And I can ask a question wiithout being attacked. FULL STOP.

Attacking other posters for asking a simple question won't serve you well in the long run. Especially when they already indicated they agree with you on the principle.

So JUST STOP.

[edisdead]

17. nobody is attacking you

Please stop with the ridiculousness.

Notice that this isn’t just about money. It is asset forfeiture. Which is unconstitutional. Your asking why someone would do something in the context of the agents doing something against the constitution is what is getting you the replies that you are getting. That isn’t “attacking” that is conversation.

[hlthe2b]

19. You need to learn to read. My subject line stated clearly: It was an abuse of power and theft.

It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft. It was an abuse of power and theft.

So now go away and attack someone else. And, I'd advise you to learn to read and not misstate someone else's comments.

[AllyCat]

44. Hi! This person was just responding that they agree with you.

Hope you can step back and have a better day. I do think there are a lot of misunderstandings here and we are all DU. Let’s all show each other some grace.

Peace.

[ecstatic]

24. My sister and I went to the Dominican Republic back in late May

My sister was carrying over $8,000 in cash on her because the surgeons and facilities only accept cash. I told her it was absolutely crazy and I was concerned that the money would be seized or taken by cops / TSA agents in the US or by robbers in the DR (especially by people who might know that Americans come there for surgery and have to carry large sums of cash). Thankfully that did not happen to us. We departed from Atlanta international airport.

[hlthe2b]

27. Your account is what I was getting at--heavens the possibility for being robbed is tremendous.

And yes, I've heard of those traveling for surgery doing so, but surely there are safer alternatives? Thank you for responding to my sincere question without joining into a seeming group attack on my post for reasons totally unclear to me.

[haele]

34. Because some people still don't have bank accounts?

Because someone may be travelling overseas and wants to take cash to get a more accurate exchange rate, or they're used to paying cash in the regions of the country they are going to.
There are lots of reasons someone pays large amounts of cash to someone else. There are several people that do services for me, and several stores I go to even here in a major American city that only take cash because of the fees their banks charge for credit or debit.

[DetroitLegalBeagle]

35. People regularly fly out to Las Vegas with large amounts of cash for gambling

Not everyone wants(or is able too) get a marker from a casino. Prior to getting our casino host, my wife and I would regularly fly with about 10k with us. Physically, its only like a 1/2 thick stack of 100's so i could carry on my person without any issue. Never had a problem. Friends of ours used to take more, closer to 30k, but he and his wife would spend 2 weeks at a time gambling and shopping all over town. Despite having hosts at MGM, Wynn, and Caesar's, they refused to take markers out and preferred to only gamble in cash and stop once the cash was all gone. Guess it was their way to make sure they didn't over do it.

[Major Nikon]

40. Privacy

Using any other form of payment you ARE going to be tracked and documented. Whether these fears are irrational or not, it's still perfectly legal. Whether or not someone is doing this for nefarious or paranoia purposes is irrelevant. The fact you can loose everything you've worked for your entire life in an instant without so much as reasonable suspicion should be frightening to everyone. I can think of all sorts of legitimate reasons why someone would want to travel with large sums of cash. If this ever happens to you, it's going to be a long and costly legal battle to get it back if you ever do.

We already know this authority is constantly abused. You have police forces all over the country shaking people down for cash because all or most of the funds go directly into their departments and indirectly benefit individual officers financially.

[sinkingfeeling]

42. Have you ever attempted to get foreign cash prior to a trip overseas? I'm going to SE Asia tomorrow

and could only get money exchanged for Thailand. So, I'll be carrying extra US dollars to have cash in a few other countries. Some times local cash has so little value, US banks won't deal in it. But the US dollar is generally very welcome in most countries. I refuse to use credit cards for tiny purchases of a few dollars. So I carry cash through airports.

[GiqueCee]

47. LEOs won't disclose much, if anything, about the practice...

... but anecdotal evidence suggests that it doesn't have to be very much money at all, and valuables like jewelry and laptops have been confiscated as well.

[GiqueCee]

8. Civil Asset Forfeiture is blatantly unconstitutional

The 4th Amendment clearly states: "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
This law was instituted ostensibly to fight drug-related crimes, but it has been severely abused by police departments, as is obviously the case in the Hartsfield Jackson shakedowns. President Obama issued an executive order freezing the enforcement of this obscene law, but Trump, in his infinite wisdom, reinstated it.
It is long past time for Civil Asset Forfeiture to be abolished once and for all, and any politician opposing its abolition would be wise to update their resumé. Highway robbery by law enforcement cannot justified under any circumstances, and must be forbidden.

[ecstatic]

33. I didn't know that it had been frozen and then reinstated by trump

Thank you for sharing. It is absolutely disgusting that this type of thing happens in this country. Muggings by cop. When I was a little kid in Brooklyn New York, I would hear my dad and uncles talk about being robbed or profiled by the police.

In larger cities with a diverse power structure, for example NYC or Atlanta, cops usually target people who they think can't or won't report them due to a lack of resources or a lack of knowledge of their rights. However, this targeting of people at airports was a huge miscalculation on their part. It is really infuriating and I can't wait to see where this case goes.

Also, it was really helpful to see in the article that once you're past the security gates, you have the right to say NO to these muggerfuckers and continue walking to your flight. At least in theory. Not sure how it would work out in practice. 😥

[crickets]

46. Thanks for that - and welcome to DU!

[Skwishy]

26. Pretty sure that's unconstitutional

If you ask me.

[True Blue American]

29. The agents were wrong.

People carry cash for various reasons. They did not have a warrent, had no legal reason to confiscate.

[dalton99a]

30. A must read.

[ProudMNDemocrat]

36. Any money or Credit Cards I have on me at any Airport, is in my wallet.

NEVER do I put extra money in a carry on that has been searched by TSA.

My carry-on usually has basics that do not warrant danger to anyone.

[h2ebits]

38. More than one way to carry "cash"

Jewelry is also a valuable that people put into their carry on luggage. Smuggling diamonds, etc. is easy with carry on luggage.

I don't want to enter into the argument that is going on other than to say that, I believe, the DEA is wrong and that this should be considered unconstitutional search and seizure.

[dembotoz]

41. nothing new....cops have been seaching and taking contects of cars with out of state plates for years now

the cops just have to claim it looks like drug money and its theirs....good luck getting it back

[Demovictory9]

48. Need to keep shining a light on this abhorrent practice