Audio Proof that TSA Thinks They're Above the Fifth Amendment

TimK — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 17:23:37 -0700

Via Fox News, the TSA in Missouri detained, harassed, and almost arrested Steve Bierfeldt, because he was carrying some cash from merchandise sales for a political organization:

Even though I’m not a lawyer, here are a couple thoughts, off the top of my head, based on my research:

You are not required to answer any questions of the police, and that is well-established Fifth-Amendment law. (You may be legally required to identify yourself, in some jurisdictions, but you are not required to answer questions.)
Even if you answer some questions, you have a constitutional right to stop answering questions at any time, without any reason for doing so.
If you are being questioned by the cops, expect them to lie to you, because that’s not considered dirty, even by respectable cops. They may threaten to force you talk to the FBI and DEA, if it serves their purpose. They may lie and say they have you dead to rights, if they think they can get any information out of you. The advice I generally hear from criminal defense lawyers is: Don’t be afraid. Rather, keep your mouth shut, and at your first available opportunity, call a criminal defense lawyer and recount to him everything that happened.
Also expect them to be verbally combative, harassing, and downright offensive. (Like the comment from the audio above: “We’re gonna help you understand if you don’t!”) They may try to bait you into a physical confrontation. Again, the advice from criminal defense lawyers: Don’t fight with them. Don’t give them the satisfaction of charging you with resisting arrest, even if you’re innocent of any crime. Submit to them, and call a criminal defense lawyer as soon as you can.
If the TSA had transported him to the police station, that would have constituted an arrest, probably an illegal arrest. Questioning him at the airport constituted detaining him, which does not require probable cause, but transporting him to another facility is a horse of a different color.
Arousing the suspicion of a government agent does not establish probable cause, which is necessary for an arrest to be made.
Refusing to answer questions also does not establish probable cause. Answering questions, on the other hand, might establish probable cause, which is why cops ask questions! Answering questions may establish probable cause against you even if you are innocent of any crime.

In the interview above, Steve explains that he was afraid, because he was also carrying some bumper stickers and campaign literature that could unfairly peg him as a suspected “terrorist.” (Can you say, “McCarthyism”?) These treasonous materials supported the Campaign for Liberty (which I consider a reputable organization) and Congressman Ron Paul—one of the few congressmen who has consistently voted to uphold all our constitutional rights, across the board. He was afraid, because he was aware of an email that unfairly pegged supporters of these organizations as possible terrorists.

Steve explains: “So I was stuck in the one place in the country where I didn’t want to be, as a supporter of liberty and the Campaign for Liberty.”

Again, with stories like this, it’s hard for me to argue that we don’t live in a “police state”—or at least something akin to one—no matter how incredible that may sound at first blush.

Always Watching!
-TimK

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Audio Proof that TSA Thinks They're Above the Fifth Amendment