Nicole White describes herself as a 28-year-old freelancing writer, “tattooed liberal” and mom to a 16-month-old son, Jackson. She lives in Annapolis, Md., with her husband, Paul, a Navy pilot.
While White and her son were passing through the security checkpoint in Atlanta yesterday, she claims a TSA agent walked away with her toddler.
My eyes welled up with tears, I stood up from my chair and I asked the female TSA agent, “Where is he going? Where is he taking my child? Why is he leaving?”
Jackson, while being whisked away looked at the male TSA agent awkwardly and repeated “no no no no.”
I started crying.
Sounds pretty harsh, doesn’t it? After all, TSA promises it won’t separate parents from their children.
We specially train our Security Officers and they understand your concern for your children. They will approach your children gently and treat them with respect. If your child becomes uncomfortable or upset, security officers will consult you about the best way to relieve your child’s concern.
So what went wrong here?
Nothing, according to the TSA. Late Friday, the agency released the complete video footage of her screening, which shows she and her son were never separated and calls into question other parts of her account. It also sent me the following statement:
On Oct. 15 at approximately 11 a.m. at Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport, a female passenger and her small child processed through the security checkpoint. Following her trip, the passenger blogged an online narration describing her airport security experience and alleged that TSA separated her child from her during screening.
TSA’s policy is that officers will not ask parents to do anything that would distance them from their children during the screening process. Our goal is to provide the highest level of security while ensuring that all passengers are treated with courtesy and respect.
After reviewing the footage it is evident that all proper screening procedures were followed and at no time did any TSA officer remove her child from her custody, as was described in the blog post.
I have also reached out to White to get some details from her. She hasn’t responded. Curiously, she’s removed all the comments from her blog post as well.
It appears that White and her son were pulled over for secondary screening. The process took a little while longer than they expected. From her post:
At this point in time, my heart began to race, thinking we would miss our flight and I would be stuck in the Atlanta airport with Jackson for who knows how long until there was another flight to Baltimore.
The female TSA agent stood in front of me while I sat with Jackson and she continued to watch luggage come through the conveyor belt.
“Ma’am, can someone please just search me so we can be on our way? We are going to miss our flight,” I said.
The female agent then called an older gentleman, also a TSA agent over. The male TSA agent stood in front of me and said “I’m going to have to pat down your son.”
The reaction from the Twittersphere, where I first reported this issue, has been swift and merciless. Although one follower called White “high-strung” most of the criticism was leveled against the agency:
Some people need to be fired!
Not COOL!!
WHAT A FRIGGIN TRAVESTY!
Disturbing story.
At least we are safe from dangerous terrorist infants.
This reminds me of the Monica Emmerson incident in 2007, where an account by a woman who had a run-in with a TSA agent over her child’s sippy cup turned out to be incomplete. There’s always another side to the story.
In the meantime, what if you’re at the airport with a child (or in my case, three of ‘em) and a TSA agent nabs one?
If I’m reading White’s account correctly, this probably could have been prevented by giving herself some extra time at the airport. Kids always slow things down. There are pit stops for diaper changes and emergency detours to the gift shop for snacks.
Also, securing your metal objects is helpful. From White’s account:
The instant I walked through the metal detector with Jackson in my arms, we beeped. I knew exactly why.
I told the TSA agent, who asked me to back up and walk through again, “It’s my son’s pacifier clip, can I put it on the conveyor belt?”
She knew exactly?
If White suspected the clip might be an issue, she might have considered putting it in her luggage.
OK, so in the unlikely event that an officer takes your child, what now?
My advice: take a deep breath and politely but firmly insist that the child be returned to you. (I think the child will probably be making similar demands at this point.)
Here’s how it went with White:
Panic set in. My hands began to shake. My body was sweating. My breath was short and my heart was racing.
They had taken my child and not told me.
Jackson was out of my eye sight.
I could not see my son.
Now sobbing, I repeated my questions to the female TSA agent.
She told me “Ma’am, we’re trying to be nice to you. We don’t know which one of you went off in the metal detector. Stay here so I can search you.”
“But my son… where is my son?” I asked over and over again.
The female TSA agent called a second female TSA agent over as she began to search me. Apparently the second female TSA agent could hear me protesting and asking for my son.
“Ma’am you need to calm down or I’m going to have to involve the authorities,” she told me.
Now I was pissed.
If the woman in the TSA video is White and I have no reason to believe it isn’t) then the only reason to be “pissed” is that the TSA officer gave her a very thorough screening. But it never separated her from her child.
That should come as a relief to parents everywhere. I still believe this incident could have been handled better. But after watching the video, I think the TSA screened White by the book.
(Photo: Matt McGee/Flickr Creative Commons)
Note: This story has been updated several times since I first posted it. As a result, some of the initial comments don’t reflect the version of the post you are now reading.
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If they are not supposed to separate parents from children, they should not have taken that boy out of Mom’s sight. Period. End of story.
Why didn’t they just let her get rid of the pacifier clip and put them through again? I know that sometimes my husband’s belt buckles sets off the machine and sometimes it doesn’t. They always give him the chance to take it off.
From her own account, Nic has an anxiety attack problem. She should have been able to realize that, even though the TSA screener was wrong in removing her child from her sight, no one was abducting her son. I realize that someone having an anxiety attack doesn’t necessarily think rationally but how did the TSA screener know that she was prone to them. Both sides could have done better.
Not sure this is the magic answer, but she could have held onto her child and politely but firmly asked for a supervisor and quoted the TSA’s own rules. This worked for my husband and me recently when he was traveling with medical liquids.
Of course, if she has not alloted enough time to go through security (it sounds like she didn’t) she might risk missing her flight by invoking this option. Then it becomes an issue of what matters to her most – her and her’s son’s comfort, or missing her flight.
In view of all my experiences, though, the reaction seems a little extreme and I’m left to wonder if they weren’t re-screening her for some other reason.
And before others tear apart the TSA, as a former cop, I can teel you criminals hide all kinds of shit in babies’ diapers, bottles, clothes, etc.
They never should have taken that child out of her sight. It is TSA’s fault she got upset, they broke their own rules. Period. End of Story.
I don’t think it’s particularly fair of you to say that this “could have been handled better. By everyone.”
Sure, Nic had a panic attack. But you have absolutely no idea what she has been through nor can you truly, fully empathise what she went through.
When it came down to it, the TSA shat on their own embolded promise. On their own website. Written by, assumedly, their own staff.
“By everyone”? Hmm.
@Laura – she reacted that way due to her anxiety disorder (Nic, the mother, mentions in in the full blog post.)
It was a normal reaction for someone with that type of medical disability, even if it wasn’t a normal reaction for someone without a disability like that. Plus, she was calm until they took away her child. That’s when she started to panic and get upset.
Most of the TSA I’ve dealt with have been wonderful – even helping me beyond the necessary capacity – with my two sons. (One even found my cell phone for me!) A few have been ambivalent or curt. But none have been so disrespectful as to ignore my pleas or not tell me exactly what was going on. I’m glad these are few and far between, but they do need to be dealt with.
Interestingly that you fail to mention her use of profanity and her need for her to pop her contraband Xanax.
I think mom escalated herself to suspicion. While it is unfortunate that TSA violated their own policy–it is unfortunate that this mom was incapable of maintaining calm and probably made the case worse for herself. And I doubt her child was far from her at all.
Sadly all that will come of this is that it is likely okay to drop the F-bomb if a child is involved.
A couple things. First, she said she had 45 minutes – that seems to me plenty of time to go thru screening and get to your plane. Second – she knew right away it was the clip. Haven’t you even known the reason for something after the fact – usually with a facepalm – and not even think about about it before the fact? Third – yeah, maybe she gets stressed and has panic attacks but they put her in a box, ignored her and then took her kid out of her sight. And, from what she wrote, treated her like crap. None of us know exactly how she handled herself or vice versa but there is absolutely no reason that child needed to be taken away from his mother. At all. For any reason. Ever. Especially by friggin airport screeners.
Sorry – not buying the whole story. I have no doubt the original author lost visual contact with her son at what is likely a hectic airport. But, my question is this: Why is this lady, who is traveling with a 16-month old child and the usual accompanying materials (stroller, diaper bag, etc) passing through security ***45 minutes*** before departure, which is ***15 minutes*** before boarding? And based upon her vivid description of her panic attack in which she claims to have almost lost consciousness, through it all she manages to so precisely retrace and recount her exact actions and quote her interactions with the TSA agents. No doubt things could have been handled better, but not just by TSA, but by the author as well. I wouldn’t buy this whole story even with a pre-paid platinum card.
Oh dear. Some poor TSA public relations grunt will have to work over the weekend fleshing out the boilerplate “incident” press release that blames the passenger for everything that went wrong, exonerates the entire TSA of any responsiblity, reminds us to obey the TSA rule that the passenger clearly violated, and finally commends the TSA screeners in Atlanta for their excellent job of protecting aviation from threats. All in a day’s work for the TSA.
No sympathy at all for her. Nowadays, you can’t be sure what people are going to do — just look at the Palestinian attack using children as bomb carriers — could this happen in the US? Sure. What about smuggling — sure. There should be no special treatment given to kids traveling with their parents.
DA DINGO DONE TAKE MY BAY-BAY!!!
This chick is bonkers . . Emergency Xanax huh?
The TSA officer did the kid a favor by taking it away from her!!
Was the child out of her sight like around the corner 10 feet away or what? Maybe the baby was out of sight because Nic was freaking out and had her eyes closed.
No matter what a lot of TSA agents are on power trips and need to realize they serve the public not rule them.
Assuming that she isn’t lying and was in fact not in eye contact with her son that’s all I need to know. Yes there are other bits that need clearing up but that’s the heart of the matter, and unless they had reason to believe she was a danger to her son they shouldn’t have been out of eye sight of each other.
If they wanted both to go through separately then that easily could have been done with her able to see her son. Or they could have wanded both without her being out of arms reach.
And your comment “If Nic suspected the clip might be an issue, she might have considered putting it in her luggage.”
She says she neglected to take it off, probably being human she simply forgot it was there, forgot it was metal. It wasn’t on her check-list or if it was she just forgot. People forget. I’ll admit I haven’t flown for a very long time but it used to be pretty common that if you set off the metal detector they would let you dump more stuff on the belt and try again –because people are human and they forget things. They forget the change in their back pocket, they don’t think about the metal hair clip they didn’t mean to put on, they forget the multi-tool that is always on their belt and now are going to have to abandon. So because people forget they go back through, dump more crap, and then go though the detector again.
“And before others tear apart the TSA, as a former cop, I can teel you criminals hide all kinds of shit in babies’ diapers, bottles, clothes, etc.”
Most people are not criminals. If a terrorist blows up a building with an explosive baby, then maybe we should start checking babies. But until that happens the government needs to stay out of people’s diapers. Security from terrorism is not as important as freedom from government abuse and intrusion… not in a philosophical sense but in a tangible, mathematical sense, far more people have been killed by unchecked governmental authority than have ever been killed by terrorists.
Nic is a liar, it’s already been debunked by the security video released by TSA. The baby was 3 feet from her in the stroller. I hate TSA too but in this case they are not guilty as accused. End of story. Watch the video and decide for yourself.
http://www.tsa.gov/blog/2009/10/response-to-tsa-agents-took-my-son.html
So now we know she is a big fat liar.
I am confused by these comments. Doesn’t the article say that the child was NOT removed from the mother’s sight as verified by the video of the incident? Why is everyone down on TSA when it appears the mother, for whatever reason, is making up the incident?
Is she related to the flying saucer people in Colorado?
Laura Townsend Elion,
She handed her baby over with the understanding that the baby wouldn’t be taken from her sight, that he was going to “inspect him” -which she probably assumed meant wanding him separately.
And if they had wanted to strip search the baby and see if there was anything in its diaper:
a) they would have needed just as much cause as if they had wanted to strip search her. Babies do not have a lesser expectation of privacy of their own body
b) They still absolutely had to have the baby’s guardian present.
Not to mention what kind of numb nut wants to take a baby’s diaper off without the parent present. Parents hate the policy of most temporary daycares (like malls, gyms, etc) won’t change diapers. They assume its because the staff don’t want to deal with a dirty diaper. The fact is the staff do not want to be accused of sexually molesting the child, so they don’t change diapers they page you and get you to do it. They won’t change babies either for the same reason.
If you watch the video, you’ll see that at no time is Nic’s child out of her sight. Before the security wanding, she buckles her baby into the stroller, and she faces the baby for the wanding. The TSA officer doesn’t ask her to turn around (then she wouldn’t have been able to watch the baby), and instead navigates in front so that mom can still watch the little one.
Also, during the screening process, something is found beneath Nic’s jeans. She is asked to remove it and it is put through the security screen. So, perhaps it is not a pacifier clip, but something hidden beneath her clothing that set off an alarm.
I’m all for keeping TSA honest and compliant, but I fail to see that they’ve violated any policy here.
Her story was off from minute one & I don’t understand everyone jumping on the TSA. This woman is a writer & needs publicity to get her work noticed. She goes on & on, but all about her & her anxiety. She never addresses any concern for the safety of her child. The TSA policy is not to separate & she never once said anything, but not in her eyesight. If someone walked between her & the baby it meets her complaint only, not a violation. The TSA agent takes the baby in front of a minimum of 4 co-workers & how many passengers & then what? She never says he left with the baby, or that she couldn’t hear him, or even that he was taken away from the area or even that she didn’t know where the baby was. For a child abduction complaint, why isn’t the focus on the child & what risk was involved? She’s just whining about her anxiety without giving any actual reason. If she has this problem, why is she flying on her own with the baby? This has more holes than Swiss cheese & is carefully written to imply far more than report facts. It sounds just like the flying saucer took my kid & by the way we want to be on TV, oh never mind, he’s right here the whole time only here it’s a TSA agent that flew the kid a few feet away. How convenient she has a blog & needs to bring attention to it. Her emergency Xanax? If you have no experience with it, it sounds like a big deal. She’d have mellowed out more if she had a can of beer. In two words – DRAMA QUEEN.
I don’t condone her actions in making up a stupid dramatic story about baby abduction. However, I do understand why she was so frustrated. Look at the time code on that video. She was left locked in a plastic box while other passengers walked freely on either side of her locked in that plastic box and were free to have picked up all of her belongings and bolted – holding an 18 month old infant for almost 5 minutes. The agents were all just standing around doing nothing. Only after she starts calling out and yelling to be let (y’know, having a panic attack) out does one of them saunter over.
Then, she has to sit on the side for another 10 minutes while the agents continue to do almost nothing. She could have been out of there in 30 seconds, but those lazy assholes take 15 minutes to hassle her. If she HAD been a terrorist, she could have blown up half the airport while those jerkoffs were busy putting on their gloves or discussing Top Chef or whatever the hell they were doing.
And yes, I do share her frustration. I’m a Canadian who had to wait 20 minutes to get felt up by some lazy-ass TSA agent (she was standing around gossiping with her coworkers for all of that time, in plain sight and doing nothing else but putting on her rubber gloves) because of my (non-underwire) bra’s metal hooks on one trip and who had her $250 prescription sunglasses stolen from the security checkpoint while they were inspecting my (perfectly ordinary New Balance) running shoes on another. I haven’t flown to the U.S. since.
BHL – you might find this interesting.
I too thought it took f-o-r-e-v-e-r to process her too. I also read lots of comments about the video being edited.
So I watched it, several times, and noted the time codes and descriptions of the activity:
Total time of TSA interaction: 9 minutes 30 seconds
Total time in “box”: 1 minute 45 seconds
Total time of “pat down” of Mom: 3 minutes 22 seconds (I believe the process was done a second time because of that “something” (possibly a knee brace?) that was under her pants)
Total time of “pat down” of Baby: 10 seconds (all 10 seconds Baby was in Mom’s lap)
Here are the time stamps from the different cameras:
11:01:11 overhead view of security screening, Mom putting stroller on x-ray conveyer, leaves baby on floor w/back turned
11:01:40 going through metal detector, baby in arms
11:02:00 coming through metal detector, baby in arms
11:04:12 exited “holding box” and walking out of frame behind TSA agent, baby in arms
11:04:31 entering frame, baby in arms, 2nd level security check
11:10:30 Mom leaving inspection area, baby in stroller
11:10:32 Mom entering concourse, baby in stroller
11:10:41 Mom leaving camera view
Here are the times stamps and descriptions of the “major” activity:
11:04:38 Female TSA agent #1 brings over stroller, baby in Mom’s arms
11:05:28 Male TSA agent #1 comes over to “inspect” baby, baby in Mom’s arms
11:05:38 Male TSA agent #1 finished “inspecting” baby, baby still in Mom’s arms
11:05:42 Mom gets up to put baby in stroller
11:06:04 Mom finished putting baby in stroller
11:06:12 Mom stands up to begin security inspection by Female TSA agent #2 – facing baby in stroller
11:06:56 Mom rolls up left pant leg and “something” appears on the floor
11:07:11 Female TSA agent #2 agent takes that “something” and puts it area for further hand/visual inspection
11:17:18 Male TSA agent #2 takes that “something” out of camera view
11:08:32 Male TSA agent #2 or 3 brings “something” back and sets on table for Mom
11:07:20 Female TSA agent #2 begins another inspection – facing baby in stroller
11:09:34 Female TSA agent #2 ends inspection – Mom still facing baby in stroller
11:10:30 Mom leaving inspection area, baby in stroller
11:10:32 Mom entering concourse, baby in stroller
11:10:41 Mom leaving camera view
What upsets me most about this story is the lack of reading comprehension on the part of about half the people who have commented here. Until I was half way through reading the comments, I did not find anyone who had read and understood that the baby was not separated from the mother. That was clear in the article. Finally a couple of people pointed out the obvious–the woman’s story was false. Whatever her problems were with TSA, they did not take her child from her and that seemed to be her principal complaint.
Even though I was inadvertently amiss while going through security at BWI yesterday, the TSA agent was downright pleasant and let me pass with my potentially “illegal” goods. After going through the x-ray, my backpack needed further scrutiny. They found my unopened 8-oz water bottle in a side pocket, that I had gotten on an Amtrak trip and forgotten about. And then they found two jars of “Mars Mud” that I had stuffed into the pack as I ran out the door and had forgotten to transfer to my checked bag. Well, the TSA agent was looking at the packages and another agent came over and said that her grandchildren love playing with the product. She also whispered that it was considered a gel. The first agent told me that since the original seal was in tact, he wasn’t taking it, but that I should try not to take it through other screenings if I could help it. He did apologize for confiscating my water. I had no complaints.
I too was initially upset at the TSA. I and everyone else on here who commented negatively owes them an apology. Looks like we were all taken.
TSA I’m sorry.
TSA is an easy target. I suspect, however, TSA employees are just doing their jobs like anyone else, and clearly this woman in the video is delusional.
I do wonder about the screening process and the length of time it takes. I have to be screened every time because of a hip replacement. At some airports, the wait for a female screener (while I wait in the glass cage) is quite long. Maybe TSA should consider the process and possible improvements.
Marilyn Long October 17, 2009 at 11:21 pm
What upsets me most about this story is the lack of reading comprehension on the part of about half the people who have commented here. Until I was half way through reading the comments, I did not find anyone who had read and understood that the baby was not separated from the mother. That was clear in the article. Finally a couple of people pointed out the obvious–the woman’s story was false. Whatever her problems were with TSA, they did not take her child from her and that seemed to be her principal complaint.
=====================================================
JOHNNY, WE HAVE A WINNER.
Seriously, I read this story on the west coast the other day on a hotel computer. I asked several TSA agents if they had “heard” about it on my travels throughout the country this weekend. No one did, but I gave them this web address and most of them just smiled at the accusations and the story background. I was hoping one of them would reply.
I dont know which is scarier. The meltdown of a Mother? Or the child traveling with an unstable Mother?
To clarify – unlike some other commenters, I never suggested that the TSA or anyone would take off a diaper to inspect a baby.
I was merely stating in anticipation of all the folks that would skewer the TSA for doing that to ‘that poor woman’ and ‘her innocent baby’ that sometimes those with bad intentions use the cloak of innoccence conveyed by a child to get away with something. Like those child suicide bombers.
As its now been pretty affirmatively shown this woman is an exaggerating liar, I think we have learned not to take everything at face value – not hysterical Xanax-popping moms, or maybe even sweet little babies.
A new reality show…Liars! starring hysterical Xanaz-popping moms and builders of flyer saucers.
Anyone who has ever had a legitimate issue with TSA should be outraged at this woman. Those who cry wolf make it that much harder for people who are truly wronged.