Protecting the Rights of First Responders Since 1982
This past Saturday morning, Orly Airport in Paris was the target of an attack by a man carrying a weapon and a can of gas in his rucksack. The suspect grabbed a French soldier at the airport and used her as a shield before two other soldiers shot the man dead. This is yet another terror-related incident in France, which has been the target of repeated acts of terrorism over the last several years.
Yesterday Faaaliga Fuiava was arrested curbside at the departure level of LAX’s Terminal 2, where airport police pulled him over after a passing motorist’s report of a hit and run that had just occurred in the Sepulveda tunnel. LAXPD found a loaded Glock semi-automatic pistol that Fuiava was attempting to retrieve from the center console of his car while also acting erratically.
This week, an airline passenger relayed how she was able to inadvertently take a loaded gun onto an airplane. In this stunning event, the woman went through TSA security, got to her gate and realized her loaded revolver was still in her purse. She has anonymously spoken out to illustrate the ease with which she was able to breach security.
There’s no question that our country’s health is in crisis. Year after year, the leading cause of death is heart disease, and the number of victims continues to grow annually. The obesity rate is also skyrocketing; medical professionals predict that by 2030, over half of our adult population will be obese. Law enforcement officers definitely don’t get a free pass when it comes to health.
Yesterday, 11 passengers breached a TSA screening checkpoint when a screening lane was left open and unmanned at JFK Airport’s JetBlue terminal. Even more unbelievable is that three of the passengers set off the metal detector yet were able to board their flights, since the Port Authority airport police were not informed by TSA of the security breach until two hours after the incident occurred.
A new report by the House Homeland Security Committee finds that current vetting procedures for airport employees are insufficient. The American Alliance of Airport Police Officers (AAAPO) has long called for stronger vetting of airport employees, particularly 100% screening of all airport employees, including TSA, and encourages lawmakers to help fix these gaps by enacting legislation.