The wrong stuff: what it takes to be a TSA terror suspect

[R. A. Hettinga]

<http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/04/07/aclu-suit/print.html>

The Register


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 Original URL: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/04/07/aclu-suit/

The wrong stuff: what it takes to be a TSA terror suspect
By John Lettice (john.lettice at theregister.co.uk)
Published Wednesday 7th April 2004 17:47 GMT

The plaintiffs' statements in an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit
against the Department of Homeland Security and the Transport Security
Administration provides some useful clues about what it takes to make the
grade as a dangerous terror suspect. Career USAF Master Sergeant and mother
of three? Retired Presbyterian Minister? ACLU special projects co-ordinator
with Pakistani-type name?

Well yes, that last one might not have come entirely as a surprise to you,
but the ACLU has chosen its sample plaintiffs well. They are all American
citizens who've experienced repeated delays and embarrassments because they
are on the shady 'no fly' list distributed to US airlines by the TSA. No
reason for their presence on this list is obtainable, and there would
appear to be no easy mechanism for getting off it.

According to the statement of Rev John F Shaw (71), when he complained to
the TSA's Ombudsman's office a TSA agent explained "that the list is
computer-generated and linked to another database known as CAPPS." The
CAPPS link is a strong signal that the no fly list will in the future be
substantially expanded as the TSA expands its use of airline passenger data.

The statements also indicate that the TSA itself has no ready mechanism for
getting people off the list. It seems to agree with some of the plaintiffs
that they're false positives, but they keep getting the treatment on
subsequent flights anyway. Two of the plaintiffs have actually been given
letters from the TSA verifying their identity, but one of these still
experiences problems. The second, student Alexandra Hay, was given a
personal escort through Philadelphia Airport by the TSA along with the
letter after the ACLU threatened to sue on her behalf.

Attorney David Nelson meanwhile reports he has been stopped over 40 times,
and that other people called David Nelson, including the one who's a sitcom
star, have had similar problems. The ACLU is asking that the court declare
that the no-fly list violates passengers' constitutional rights to freedom
from unreasonable search and seizure and due process of law under the
Fourth and Fifth Amendments. .

Related link ACLU launches suit
(http://www.aclu.org/SafeandFree/SafeandFree.cfm?ID=15430&c=272)



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R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah at ibuc.com>
The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'