How many times must we hear that line of pretended outrage “Has the TSA gone too far?” before something is done about the tormentful pat downs to which America’s most vulnerable are subjected?
Maine Representative Aaron Libby (R-Waterboro), no stranger to the Tenth Amendment Center, is sponsoring legislation to protect people from the Transportation Security Administration’s screening policy when it goes too far. LD 841 would create Class D crimes for officers who make “unlawful contact” during a security screening for access to public facilities, exempting prisons. Unlawful contact is defined in the bill as:
touching of the anus, genitals, breasts, buttocks or inner thigh directly or through clothing or touching in a manner that would be offensive to a reasonable person.
LD 841 is currently in the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee and has eight co-sponsors. One of them is Representative, Diane Russell, a Democrat who doesn’t expect partisanship to be an issue in advancing this legislation.
“I have yet to pass through one of the new TSA scanners without being patted down afterward – even after I’ve opted into the scanner over the pat-down. I feel violated every time which is precisely why I cosponsored Rep. Libby’s bill.”
ACTION ITEMS
1. Contact committee members. If you live in Maine, contact members of the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee and ask them to pass LD841 on to the full House for consideration. You can find committee member contact information HERE.
2. Contact your own representative. Contact your representative and ask her/him to support LD841. You can find representative contact information HERE.
3. Share this information widely. Please pass this along to your friends and family. Also share it with any and all grassroots groups you’re in contact with around the state. Please encourage them to email this information to their members and supporters.
If you live outside of Maine, encourage your representative and senator to sponsor legislation placing limits on TSA searches. You can track efforts around the U.S. and find model legislation HERE.
