Airline passenger refuses search consent, is searched anyway by agent | Behind the Investigation

Searches of innocent passengers at airport boarding gates continue nationwide as federal drug officers look for cash they can seize. Atlanta News First Investigates documented the practice in the series In Plane Sight, showing how plainclothes officers confront passengers who’ve already successfully cleared inspections by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). In court records, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and federal prosecutors describe these stops as “cold consent encounters.” Multiple videos recorded by passengers show their consent was compelled by agents who told them they would otherwise miss their flights, or face a drug dog screening and a long wait for a search warrant. A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by comedians Eric Andre and Clayton English against Clayton County Police after the men were stopped on the jet bridge at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The judge ruled the men were free to walk away from police at any time, and their bag searches were consensual. U.S. law allows airline passengers to carry any amount of cash onboard a domestic flight. Read the full story here: https://www.atlantanewsfirst.com/2024... #atlantanews #atlantanewsfirst #atlanta #georgia #georgianews #investigations #investigativejournalism #drugs #airports #airlines #search #constitution