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SAN DIEGO -- A San Diego woman said she drove home from Denver rather than submit to what she viewed as an intrusive search by airport security screeners.
Ava Kingsford, 36, said she was flagged down for a pat-down search at Denver International Airport last month as she prepared to board a flight home with her 3-month-old son.
Kingsford objected when a female screener with the Transportation Security Administration told her, "I'm going to feel your breasts now."
"She was patting me down, and frisking me, and basically covering all parts of my body, my legs, and wanding me with the security wand. And when I thought she had completed her search, she looks at me and said, 'I'm going to be feeling your breasts now,'" Kingsford said. "I was stunned, and I said, 'I beg your pardon?!'"
Kingsford said when she told the screener that she was uncomfortable with it, more security agents and police officers arrived. They told her that she couldn't board her flight without submitting to the final step of the search.
"I was shaking, I was sobbing. I couldn't believe that this was happening to me. It was surreal. It was like out of a movie, with these guys yelling at me, telling me that, yes, she has to feel my breasts or I'm not getting on my airplane," Kingsford said.
SURVEY
Do you think a TSA screener went overboard by asking to touch a woman's breasts during the secondary screening process?
Yes. This is unnecessary. You can see explosives or other hidden devices just by pulling a shirt tight.
No. In this day and age, screeners have to be more vigilant, and a full pat-down search of women requires going beneath, between and above the breasts.
Results | Disclaimer
They took her to a private area to continue the search, but she said she was still uncomfortable with them touching her breasts so she tugged down her shirt to show them that she wasn't hiding anything.
"And then they said, 'That's it. We're not going to complete the search and you're not boarding your plane,'" Kingsford said. "They escorted us out and said they didn't care how we got home. It wasn't their problem."
She and her fiance ended up renting a car for the 15-hour drive home.
The Transportation Security Administration said its screeners did nothing wrong.
The agency announced extra security measures last month in the wake of the mid-air bombing of two Russian jetliners. Authorities believe two women smuggled explosives onto the aircraft, possibly in "torso packs" underneath their clothing.
Bob Kapp, customer service manager for the TSA in Denver, said that to conduct a thorough pat-down search of women, "it does require going beneath, between and above the breasts."
Kapp said a few people have been a little bit alarmed by the procedure. But he called it "a sign of the times" that is probably here to stay.
Kingsford said she's anxious about boarding another flight any time soon.
"I don't see how they can get away with feeling women's breasts. I don't see how they can say it's part of their new security policy. It's an infringement, a violation, in my opinion. It's just wrong," Kingsford said.
Kingsford said she had nothing to hide, and the TSA agents could plainly see that.
"I was wearing a pretty form-fitting tank top. There's nothing really to be hiding. You could see my figure. I didn't have any packs. She had patted down my torso. She had completed the torso pat down and wanded me with a security wand but some reason she said she wanted to see my breasts," Kingsford said.
"It was uncomfortable and I felt violated. And the way we were treated when I didn't concede was like I was a criminal. It was an awful experience," she said.
Ava Kingsford, 36, said she was flagged down for a pat-down search at Denver International Airport last month as she prepared to board a flight home with her 3-month-old son.
Kingsford objected when a female screener with the Transportation Security Administration told her, "I'm going to feel your breasts now."
"She was patting me down, and frisking me, and basically covering all parts of my body, my legs, and wanding me with the security wand. And when I thought she had completed her search, she looks at me and said, 'I'm going to be feeling your breasts now,'" Kingsford said. "I was stunned, and I said, 'I beg your pardon?!'"
Kingsford said when she told the screener that she was uncomfortable with it, more security agents and police officers arrived. They told her that she couldn't board her flight without submitting to the final step of the search.
"I was shaking, I was sobbing. I couldn't believe that this was happening to me. It was surreal. It was like out of a movie, with these guys yelling at me, telling me that, yes, she has to feel my breasts or I'm not getting on my airplane," Kingsford said.
SURVEY
Do you think a TSA screener went overboard by asking to touch a woman's breasts during the secondary screening process?
Yes. This is unnecessary. You can see explosives or other hidden devices just by pulling a shirt tight.
No. In this day and age, screeners have to be more vigilant, and a full pat-down search of women requires going beneath, between and above the breasts.
Results | Disclaimer
They took her to a private area to continue the search, but she said she was still uncomfortable with them touching her breasts so she tugged down her shirt to show them that she wasn't hiding anything.
"And then they said, 'That's it. We're not going to complete the search and you're not boarding your plane,'" Kingsford said. "They escorted us out and said they didn't care how we got home. It wasn't their problem."
She and her fiance ended up renting a car for the 15-hour drive home.
The Transportation Security Administration said its screeners did nothing wrong.
The agency announced extra security measures last month in the wake of the mid-air bombing of two Russian jetliners. Authorities believe two women smuggled explosives onto the aircraft, possibly in "torso packs" underneath their clothing.
Bob Kapp, customer service manager for the TSA in Denver, said that to conduct a thorough pat-down search of women, "it does require going beneath, between and above the breasts."
Kapp said a few people have been a little bit alarmed by the procedure. But he called it "a sign of the times" that is probably here to stay.
Kingsford said she's anxious about boarding another flight any time soon.
"I don't see how they can get away with feeling women's breasts. I don't see how they can say it's part of their new security policy. It's an infringement, a violation, in my opinion. It's just wrong," Kingsford said.
Kingsford said she had nothing to hide, and the TSA agents could plainly see that.
"I was wearing a pretty form-fitting tank top. There's nothing really to be hiding. You could see my figure. I didn't have any packs. She had patted down my torso. She had completed the torso pat down and wanded me with a security wand but some reason she said she wanted to see my breasts," Kingsford said.
"It was uncomfortable and I felt violated. And the way we were treated when I didn't concede was like I was a criminal. It was an awful experience," she said.
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