Gun-packing Atlanta air travelers land in jail
(Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com)
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Monday was a busy day for Transportation Security Administration agents on the lookout for weapons at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
Within a two-hour period, agents confiscated three guns from travelers and police arrested them, , according to Channel 2 Action News.
So far this year, TSA agents have confiscated 87 guns at the airport, one of the busiest in the nation. By comparison, 69 guns were taken from travelers last year at Hartsfield-Jackson.
According to the TSA website:
Travelers may only transport unloaded firearms in a locked, hard-sided container in or as checked baggage. All firearms, ammunition and firearm parts, including firearm frames and receivers, are prohibited in carry-on baggage.
Sheryl Rexrode was arrested around 10:45 a.m. Monday after agents discovered a .380-caliber handgun in her carry-on. An hour later, Derek Morgan was arrested after he was found with a .32-caliber handgun, which his father said Morgan had forgotten to take out of his bag. Another handgun, a .380-caliber weapon, was discovered shortly afterward in traveler Wendy Parker’s bag.
“It was absolutely a mistake. She’s a sales rep,” Parker’s attorney, Jay Jackson, told Channel 2. “She brings the gun with her in her bag when she’s in her territory. She’s a woman just trying to make sure she’s safe.”
All three travelers were taken into custody and charged with carrying a weapon in unauthorized locations. Bonds ranged from $5,000 to $10,000.
Is there any circumstance under which you think travelers should be allowed to have a gun in a carry-on on a commercial flight?
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214 comments Add your comment
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:07 pm
Regardless of how anyone feels, I challenge anyone to logically explain why the second amendment doesn’t at least need to be reworded.
I can agree with edawg.I’m sure you are aware our founders had no idea of what “arms” could be invented in the future.
Sparta_Bubba
December 5th, 2012
4:07 pm
Ok Johnny Reb, so a terrorist with a clean record would be able to attempt to bring a gun onto a plane under your scenario and if they are caught, no harm, no foul because they have no record and by your summation their intent was heavenly. But if they are not caught and get onto the plane, there goes the farm. You gun loving nuts are beyond amazement!
chest fever
December 5th, 2012
4:09 pm
If you’re going to keep talking about the 2nd amendment, and forgeting the part about the well regulated militia, then you’re not just talking about guns. It is the right to bear “arms.” Nuclear weapons were part of the “arms” race. Handgrenades are “arms.” If you think it’s logical to allow people on a pressurized airplane to carry guns, then I guess you might as well let people suit up like suicide bombers to go the grocery. There’s a point when it seems crazy – and that’s why people use the term “gun nuts.”
Travis McGee
December 5th, 2012
4:10 pm
The time is near when something is going to happen — a criminal incident where people with a carry permit all pull their guns at the same time to intervene in the criminal situation only to be involved in a circular firing squad or the police will arrive and shoot the wrong person with the gun.
It’s too easy to buy a gun and get a carry permit.
Rob in Atlanta
December 5th, 2012
4:10 pm
Being a frequent traveler airport security can often make you crazy. Occasional travelers are the worst (especially with children). Business travelers (like me) are almost as bad due to cell phones and emails, and texts. I turn my phone off when I get to the security line.
My idea is to have a metal detector at the entrance to the security lines. That way if it goes off the future passenger can and should check to see why. And before they get in line and cause a huge delay. I believe this would speed up all security lines and be relatively inexpensive.
Years ago I bought a razor knife in China for work. I was scraping finishes and coatings off sample products. I left it in my pants pocket. When I was asked to empty my pants at security in a Chinese airport I realized I still had the knife and I pretended to sneeze and ran to the bathroom. My wife told security I was feeling sick (which I really was when I found the knife was still in my pocket). It was an oversight that could have turned very ugly.
Why not let passengers get ready to go through security instead of waiting to find out they have something with them that might cause a delay? I have seen women take 3 or 4 minutes to get their jewelry off. If they passed through a pre-screening area they would have know to remove it before getting in line. The same is true for tools, samples, and many other carry on items.
edawg
December 5th, 2012
4:12 pm
I’m asking for a rocket propelled grenade launcher for Christmas b/c the second amendment protects my right to bear arms. And no, I don’t care that it was written 221 years ago and doesn’t even make sense anymore.
Betty perry
December 5th, 2012
4:12 pm
You know the whole gun thing has gotton so much out of hand. Everybody don’t need to have a gun. Only people that are in law enforcement. Your right to bare arms is so out of control. You got the fools out here just killing everybody.What kind of none sense is this. They have the rights to have a gun, but I don’t have the right to feel safe because somone will get upset with me and just pull out a gun and kill me.
commoncents
December 5th, 2012
4:13 pm
scott @ 4:07
What needs to be changed? It sounds great the way it is:
“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
Wonka
December 5th, 2012
4:13 pm
Sorry folks. Even as a pro-Second Amendment, gun toting and armed citizen…I think anyone who carries a loaded weapon into a TSA checkpoint is an idiot. “I forgot” is not an excuse. Just like if someone were to be injured by a negligent discharge from said weapon, “I forgot” will not hold up in court. Nor will it absolve you of your responsibilty as a firearms owner. It seems like many people want the benefits of the rights without the responsibility of them.
edawg
December 5th, 2012
4:14 pm
scott,
Thanks for seeing my point.
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:14 pm
You gun loving nuts are beyond amazement
The same could be said for you gun hating nuts. Jus sayin……
Betty perry
December 5th, 2012
4:17 pm
You can carry a gun but i cannot have a taser or stung gun? what kind of crazness is this?
edawg
December 5th, 2012
4:17 pm
commoncents,
“It sounds great the way it is”. You’re kidding…right?
How about something like…”Each and every citizen is allowed to keep and bear arms that meet the following qualifications…”
Take out the part about the militia and define what type of arms are allowed. Or just allow everything and I’ll go get my grenade launcher.
commoncents
December 5th, 2012
4:20 pm
Betty perry- My right to carry trumps your opinion on firearms.
Secondly, the people you are afraid of probably don’t have the right to have a firearm to begin with.
“Your right to bare arms is so out of control.” Guess what? It’s your right, too.
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:21 pm
commoncents
December 5th, 2012
4:13 pm
Don’t get me wrong I’m not an “anti”. But the word “arms” didn’t have the same meaning back in the day.
Mike
December 5th, 2012
4:22 pm
RGB says: “Ever forget to turn off your cell phone before you enter a church (excludes the secular left) or business?”
Not very mature to take a swipe at people like that. People on the left go to church too, and many on the right do not.
People on the left are your fellow citizens. Be respectful, please.
Chris
December 5th, 2012
4:23 pm
All of you “No Tolerance” people out there are stupid idiots! People that carry a weapon all the time DO FORGET that they are carrying. When I was a Federal Agent, I carried a weapon all the time, in airports and on flights. I remember like it was yesterday after I left the Federal Government and I went to the airport to pick up my wife I TOTALLY FORGOT that I was carrying a weapon. Thank goodness that I had not tried to pass through security yet and was able to go back out to the car and put it away. These people are NOT criminals and they certainly are NOT terrorists. Times do change and we certainly need the security, but not from these folks. I completely believe that they forgot and they should not be punished in any kind of way. Especially if they have no prior record of offenses. It was just an honest mistake. It happens. Just like the little boy who forgets to take the pocket knife out of his pants and accidentally takes it to school. They end up throwing the book at him and he certainly doesn’t deserve it.
name (required)
December 5th, 2012
4:26 pm
No, a bullethole in the skin of a plane would NOT be catastrophic, you idiots. Do you know what would happen? There would be a hole in the wall, but guess what? There’s ALREADY holes in the wall of a plane. They’re called “doors” and they’re not sealed very well. Ever sit next to an emergency exit? Hear that noise? That’s called “air”. It would just give the pressurized air another venue from which to leave the airplane, but not at any faster pace than it already is at 30,000 feet.
“Explosive decompression” is movie magic….not real life.
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:26 pm
Thanks for seeing my point.
You are welcome edawg! I try to discuss an issue with an open mind.I learn more that way.
markie mark
December 5th, 2012
4:27 pm
logically edawg? we would never agree on the new updated wording….America is too diverse in its beliefs to ever repeat creating a document like the Constitution that would be approved by the states…
markie mark
December 5th, 2012
4:31 pm
“So basically you think as long as something is a “gun”, we should be able to have it but other more destructive weaponry should be banned? What about grenades?”
edawg, there obviously will never be an answer to satisfy you. You will want to escalate ad infinitum. I guess you get to decide that for yourself. Those same guys with guns are doing all they can to capture grenades….whatever a government is going to use against its citizens, it is fair game (in my opinion) for those citizens to use against their government once they have been unfairly attacked.
Roberto
December 5th, 2012
4:34 pm
Also, don’t forget to put your DARTS in checked baggage. Before Sept. 11th I was taken away because my darts, in their case, were in my briefcase. I shudder to think at what they would do to me now? Probably be sent to a gulag in Ludowici.
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:34 pm
America is too diverse in its beliefs to ever repeat creating a document like the Constitution that would be approved by the states…
Well,there IS that!
markie mark
December 5th, 2012
4:34 pm
“I’m asking for a rocket propelled grenade launcher for Christmas b/c the second amendment protects my right to bear arms. And no, I don’t care that it was written 221 years ago and doesn’t even make sense anymore.”
and there we go….edawg has now dropped the pretense of a logical discussion anymore and become his true self.
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:41 pm
and there we go….edawg has now dropped the pretense of a logical discussion anymore and become his true self.
You shouldn’t have used so much logic on him markie!
edawg
December 5th, 2012
4:44 pm
What is illogical about stating that a grenade launcher is an arm? What is illogical about stating that the second amendment was written 221 years ago? What is illogical about stating that the wording doesn’t make sense?
Curzen
December 5th, 2012
4:49 pm
“But keep them at home, locked away from your kids, and don’t take them somewhere that you can shoot me. I’m not armed!”
That’s your own fault. I prefer to not be a victim. I also won’t shoot you, that’s for criminals who don’t care about laws either way. So why do you want to make me a victim as well? Are you going to explain to my daughter why she couldn’t defend herself against that rapist, as you don’t want her to have a gun?
Curzen
December 5th, 2012
4:51 pm
“I’m asking for a rocket propelled grenade launcher for Christmas b/c the second amendment protects my right to bear arms. And no, I don’t care that it was written 221 years ago and doesn’t even make sense anymore”
supreme court opinion holds that the 2nd amendment does not apply to weapons which kill indiscriminately, as in grenades or bombs as an example.
Pete
December 5th, 2012
4:51 pm
First, it isn’t legal, but can’t think of any circumstance under which an individual who is not a law enforcement officer should be allowed to carry a firearm on board a passenger aircraft. While just about any law-abiding citizen can get a carry permit, that doesn’t mean they have the judgement or skill to properly react to an incident on an aircraft should one occur. I’m thinking drunk, unruly passenger, etc. Discharging a firearm in an aircraft in flight is not a trivial matter.
Sara Tonin
December 5th, 2012
4:53 pm
I worked at ATL for nine years after 9/11 and suggested several times that they place signage in the parking lots and at the terminal entrances reminding people of the federal security requirement as it relates to guns. The powers that be at the time always said it “would not be aesthetically pleasing” to do so. By the way, those were the same bumpkins who refused to establish a cell phone lot because it wouldn’t produce revenue, and who refused to lease space to Chick-Fil-A because they would not open on Sundays. Things (and personnel) have changed since then and n ow there is a cell phone lot and Chick-Fil-A plans to open two airport locations in February 2013. Maybe they will reconsider the signage idea??
Hamad Meander
December 5th, 2012
4:53 pm
Get over it people. Fine them and let them go on with their lifes. At least this proves the TSA can detect something dangerous – shouldn’t they be tested every once in a while with a real problem? I would assume each of these people caught with a weapon had a concealed carry permit. If they didn’t, then there is an issue to discuss.
scott
December 5th, 2012
4:55 pm
edawg
December 5th, 2012
4:44 pm
Well you did move from logical discussion to being a bit snarky. Jus sayin……..
Limozena
December 5th, 2012
4:55 pm
I haven’t been in Hartsfield in a while so I’m not current on what signage TSA has in place to warn air travelers about firearms. Whatever it is, it apparently is not working.
I believe most of the gun carriers honestly (stupidly?) forget there is a weapon in their carry-on. One thing TSA could do: the employee who checks boarding passes before you get to the screener checkpoint could pointedly ask every person “Do you have a weapon on your person or in your carry-on?” That one simple question might kickstart some brains into gear and keep a few knuckleheads out of jail.
Donald Baxter
December 5th, 2012
4:57 pm
“It was absolutely a mistake. She’s a sales rep,” Parker’s attorney, Jay Jackson, told Channel 2. “She brings the gun with her in her bag when she’s in her territory. She’s a woman just trying to make sure she’s safe.”
She must have some rough territory! Is much of Georgia really the wild, wild West? Carrying a gun on your person has been shown to decrease one’s safety, not increase it. And a gun in the airport is idiocy. If you can’t remember you HAVE a gun, how could you remember to use it if you can’t remember NOT to bring it through TSA?
scott
December 5th, 2012
5:01 pm
Curzen
December 5th, 2012
4:51 pm
Well said.
edawg
December 5th, 2012
5:02 pm
The argument about needing guns be able to fight off the government is bogus to me. That ship sailed here a long time ago. That might have been a valid argument 100 years ago but not today and probably not as far back as the 1940s or 1930s.
I’m uneasy about that being the case…but it is most definitely the case. Don’t kid yourself.
ylojkt
December 5th, 2012
5:05 pm
Has anyone ever thought of using common sense? These guns (if they have a permit) are completely legal no more than 50 feet away from where these people are screened and arrested. Why can they not just be given the option to go back to their vehicle and secure their gun, or to UPS where they can ship it? In my opinion, the airport or airline should have a way of dealing with this so both passenger and handgun can land at the needed destination.
If the guns are illegal, then you have an issue that is an arrestable offense, but permitted gun owners should be allowed more respect than being arrested.
A lot of people on here act like they’ve never forgotten something they had in their possession before, I know it’s not true with 100% of you. You’ve just forgotten something you’re comfortable with or used to having, same as with many gun owners, knife carriers, pepper spray carriers, etc. You may have completely forgotten that pack of your favorite gum, but if a situation comes up to remind you of it, you’ll know where it is; it’s the same with people who carry weapons comfortably. I carry a knife every day of every year, I use it pretty much daily. I remember I have it on me when I need it, but I don’t walk around repeating in my head “I HAVE A DEADLY WEAPON AND I’LL USE IT IF NECESSARY.” Quite frankly, I forget about it until I need it, same as with these upstanding lady travelers.
I would suspect that these smart ladies carry these guns with them when they drive across the southeast for their jobs, probably keeping the gun within hands reach while driving and transferred to a purse when they reach their destination. Once home and safe from the potential dangers of their travels, I would surmise that they probably just grabbed the gun out of the car and stuck it in their bag to carry into the house, not to use the bag until the next trip. At home safe and gun is out of mind, all pretty normal activity.
My wife is one who is scared of guns, and I can assure you that if she had a traveling job I would insist that she get a permit and carry while on her travels. I can also assure you that if this was the case, she would do something almost exactly like the scenario I described above when she got home; no need to even think about the gun after arriving home safe and sound.
ugaprof
December 5th, 2012
5:06 pm
People who accidentally forget to leave their guns behind aren’t criminals. How about some prominent SIGNS at the entry to the airport (to be seen by people driving in as well as walking in) to remind them? Also, how about some legal way of dealing with a gun you’ve accidentally brought along — such as a way to having it FedExed to your destination or your home?
Frequent Flyer
December 5th, 2012
5:10 pm
I’ll say up front that I was one of the “idiots” who had a gun found in my carry on luggage last year. To say that I felt stupid would be a gross understatement. It was among the dumbest things I have done. Explaining why it was there is pointless but it was an accident and I had no intention or desire to have the gun with me during my travel, i.e. I wasn’t trying to get away with anything. Going through all the legal processes that followed is a suffificient deterrent for me. I ask for no sympathy and make no justification.
What I do ask for is application of reason. I agree that weapons should not be allowed on planes as well as some other places but the harsh penalties suggested by the self righteous bloggers are pretty scary. Had my case gone to a jury trial, I shudder at the thought of what penalties they might have doled out to me. As it was, I’m out over $3000 plus a couple nights in jail for a mistake that put no one at risk. That’s right, no one was at risk. My gun was not going to go on a rampage by itself and neither was I. I have a carry permit because I qualified for it. I have never robbed, shot, stabbed, raped or assaulted anyone. Again, no appeal for sympathy but an appeal for reason. The metal detectors did their job of finding what is not supposed to be there. For the hardened criminal, a couple of nights in the county jail is no big deal. But for a law abiding regular Joe like me who only gets an occasional traffic ticket, the whole experience was a very big deal and something I intend to avoid like the plague.
So, for the “off with their heads” type of bloggers, consider this. Have you ever (even once?) been cited for a moving violation in your car? If not, I’m sure you know a “nice” person who has. Would you have felt immediate jail time was appropriate for your violation? You should demand that the drivers licenses of all offenders (even the first timeers) are permanently revoked with some sort of excessive fine and maybe a few lashes thrown in to boot. Imagine how traffic would improve plus all the lives that would be saved, the energy dependance reduced and all other manner of “good” things that would result. I just saw today that Georgia has had over 1000 people die in car crashes this year. The number of mangled and permanently injured would be approximately 4 – 5 times that figure at least. Fatalities and injuries are a BY PRODUCT of motor vehicle use, i.e. they just happen as a natural result of people driving on the streets and we accept such results as inevitable but choose to keep the cars because they are just so nice to have and use. If television sets had the same record, they would be off the market before you could watch (or possibly star in) the last episode of Jerry Springer. Nearly all crashes are due to someone failing to obey the law. By your logic, these people are too stupid to know that they are operating a motor vehicle improperly and putting the general population in direct risk. Consequently, they should be punished very severely with no possibility to ever operate such a potentially lethal machine again. They have clearly demonstrated their stupidity plus their indifference to public safety. A mistake? No excuse. If you’re too stupid to know you’re breaking the law, you’re too stupid to be driving on public roads. After all, someone could have been killed! In comparison, under no circumstance was anyone going to be hurt by me having my gun with me because it was under my control and I would not allow that. Again, no justification for what I did but my point is that, ALL moving traffic violations, under SOME circumstance, can and do kill people. That’s why they are illegal! So, although I am not a Bible thumper, I’ll borrow from the text. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. For all of you who want to disarm honest citizens who want to protect themselves and their families, turn in your car first to show you are sincere about public safety. It’s proven to be more likely to kill anyone than my gun is. Otherwise, recognize your hypocracy for what it is and restrict your misinformed ideas to other like minded liberal media drones. As an American, I fully support your right to express any idea but I also support my right to expose narrow minded idiocy for what it is. Let the word twisters and selective memories reply.
edawg
December 5th, 2012
5:12 pm
point taken Curzen
scott
December 5th, 2012
5:15 pm
such as a way to having it FedExed to your destination or your home
That’s against the law ugaprof.
Raiderbeater
December 5th, 2012
5:17 pm
I am a cop.
Half the people on here abhor guns and believe we can save them if a life threatening situation arises. We can’t and won’t.
Big Hat
December 5th, 2012
5:20 pm
When everybody has a gun, we won’t need cops, let alone the TSA. All problems with be settled the old-fashioned way, the right way, the 2nd Amendment way. Think of the cost savings; no cops, no judges, no courthouses, no jails, no lawyers. A win-win for America all the way around.
darkstar3d
December 5th, 2012
5:20 pm
As a traveler thats in an airplane almost 80 times a year, with a checked gun everytime (except flying to those states that don’t honor my carry permit), I fail to see how these folks just “forgot”. No one needs a gun on the flight unless its a military chartered one.
I love the comment above that says its irrational only because its Georgia. Obviously a person who doesn’t understand that 80% of the states in the union, you can carry loaded guns in an airport. Many states you can carry a gun anywhere but where the Feds say you can’t.
scott
December 5th, 2012
5:22 pm
Let the word twisters and selective memories reply
OK,I will. Thanks for the most rational and informative post here today!
scott
December 5th, 2012
5:31 pm
darkstar3d
December 5th, 2012
5:20 pm
Look at FF’s post at 5:10. It can happen!
Me
December 5th, 2012
5:37 pm
Meli
What a moron!
Hamad Meander
December 5th, 2012
5:52 pm
Frequent Flyer – thank you for sharing your experience and proofing that in government, common sense is neither common or sensical.
ESL
December 5th, 2012
6:03 pm
All Concealed Carry Permit holders should be allowed on any flight at any time to any US Destination regardless of the reason they might be carrying a legally owned firearm. Banning firearms from aircraft or in locations near aircraft such as terminals is a violation of every Americans Constitutional rights. Leonard
Todd Smith
December 5th, 2012
7:08 pm
Ok here are my two cents worth: To the people blasting having guns..especially to JR…JR you are right, absolutely chances are you will NEVER need a weapon to defend your self during your life..BUT..what if? what if you do? I couldn’t live knowing I allowed my child or other loved ones being killed or harmed, when if I’d owned a firearm I could have protected them possibly. The thing about gun control is it doesn’t work..Jamaica has banned all firearms in that country for 99% of the population, yet it has the 3rd highest murder rate in the world per capita, Same with El Savador, it has the NUMBER 1 murder rate per capita in the world. The UK put some of the most stringent gun control laws in the world into affect few years back, did the firearm rate go down? sure did, did over all murder rate go down sure did, but guess what? knife murders went up by 50% in two years, deaths by other objects went up by 60% in two years, and now the over all murder rate is creeping up again. Here is the thing, if you look closely at this there is ONE big thing that seems to stand out, at least to me, in all these places, poverty, When you high poverty levels you have high murder rates. Same with US, poverty is going up and so are murder rates and irrational acts. If you do NOT believe start searching and reading and you will see for yourself. People do things when they feel they have no other options, and things are getting this way in america due to crooked politicians and government that doesn’t do it’s job. Do not let the left take your weapons or you will be in the shape of jamaica, el salvador and starting to be UK. One more point, it is pretty much mandatory for every male in Switzerland to own a gun. Yet murder rates are 1.2 per 100,000. Yet poverty the rate is VERY low.