Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers found five separate handguns that were being carried by passengers over the course of four days at the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne Country Airport (DTW). Each handgun was carried on the passenger’s body, and each was considered an isolated incident.
Weekend long incident
The first weapon found was on March 30th. As the first passenger was about to enter a body scanner, he asked one of the surrounding TSA officers if he could hand over something that he had forgotten about. This happened to be a loaded firearm.
Additionally, three more isolated incidents occurred on Friday, March 31st. Each of these incidents happened in less than 90 minutes, ranging from 06:20 to 07:45. The fifth incident of the weekend was on Sunday, April 2nd. Each of these handguns was located on the x-ray screen during the standard TSA screening of carry-on luggage. All five of the discovered handguns were found to be fully loaded.
The airport police were called upon at each incident and immediately responded. In each separate incident, the police confiscated the firearm and cited each of the travelers. The TSA Acting Federal Security Director of Michigan, Bill Byrne, spoke about the string of incidents, saying,
“Although it’s extremely troubling that so many passengers continue to make this careless, expensive mistake, the general public should feel safer knowing that the TSA officers in Detroit continue to perform their jobs exceptionally well and are stopping these firearms from going past the checkpoint. When dangerous items such as loaded guns are brought to a security checkpoint, it represents a serious security and safety concern. Remember that a concealed carry permit or enrollment in the TSA PreCheck® program are not exemptions from this policy.”
So far this year, TSA agents at Detroit Metropolitan Airport have detected and recovered 28 total firearms. In 2022, TSA agents confiscated 100 firearms at DTW checkpoints. This was a slight increase compared to the 94 that were found in 2021.
Weapon charge penalties
At the end of last year, the TSA announced increased measures to mitigate the number of firearms that were being found at security checkpoints. In 2022, TSA agents intercepted a record amount of handguns and other weapons, totaling over 6,300 firearms, with 88% being loaded. This broke the previous record of 5,972 that were found in 2021.
Although firearm possession laws vary by state in the United States, firearms are not allowed in any carry-on luggage. Passengers can instead transport firearms through checked luggage by declaring them to their airline at check-in. There are typically additional requirements for bringing firearms on airplanes, although the requirements vary by airline.
To help reduce the number of firearms that are being brought into airports through carry-on luggage, the TSA increased the maximum fine for doing so. The new maximum civil penalty for a firearm violation is now $14,950. The circumstances of each firearm violation determine the penalty amount that is fined.
The TSA may also conduct additional screening on those that violate the firearm rules and will also revoke TSA PreCheck Eligibility for any offender. Additional state laws may require law enforcement intervention for firearm violations.