TSA saves us - Iraqi with "bomb" tries to board plane

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rick_reno

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http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-pump24.html

The above URL is included for proof that I didn't fabricate this story.

Evidence ruled sufficient in penis pump case

August 24, 2006

BY STEFANO ESPOSITO Staff Reporter

The female airport security guard held the small, black, squeezable rubber object she'd just plucked out of Mardin Amin's backpack, and eyed it suspiciously.

Standing next to his mother, an embarrassed Amin whispered out of one corner of his mouth that it was a "pump" -- as in a penis pump. The guard misunderstood the Iraqi man and thought she heard the word "bomb," Amin's attorney told a Cook County judge Wednesday.

"He told her it's a pump," attorney Eileen O'Neill-Burke said as a cluster of burly, snickering police officers watched the court proceedings. "He's standing with his mother. Of course he's not going to shout this out."

But after listening to the female guard testify she heard Amin "clearly" say the word bomb during the Aug. 16 incident at O'Hare Airport, Judge Gerald Winiecki decided there was enough evidence for the case to move forward. Amin, 29, is charged with felony disorderly conduct and faces up to three years in prison if convicted.

Hid it from mom

Prosecutors say Amin, who was on his way to Turkey with his mother and two small children last week, twice told security officials that he was carrying a bomb. Only later did he admit he had initially lied about the rubber object's true function because he didn't want his mother to know he was carrying a penis pump, prosecutors say.

After Wednesday's hearing, a mostly jovial Amin said airport security officials never gave him an opportunity to explain the misunderstanding. And he said he would never utter the word "bomb" while going through security.

'Half of America' uses it

"Come on -- what do you think?" said Amin, who lives in Skokie and works for a janitorial service.

Amin may not want his mother to know he has a penis pump, but he said he doesn't consider it an unusual device to own.

"It's normal," he said. "Half of America they use it."

Amin is due back in court Sept. 13.

sesposito@suntimes.com
 
Here we go again
A suspect makes a claim against a government worker and it is assumed true.

He could have said bomb
He could have muttered pump with an accent that made it sound like pump
But his attorney and he says that he said pump, so it must be true and the government must be lying.


Would the same people be snickering at the officer if she had made the same speculation last month about an out of the ordinary liquid filled object.
I know the same people will be here condeming the TSA when something gets through

Anyone that travels through airport security with embarrassing objects these days is a moron and deserves extra scrutiny, especially when they start figetting and whispering out of the corner of their mouth to their traveling partner
 
Maybe he said "pump."
Maybe the official heard "bomb"

Regardless, this should have been settled after 5 minutes of talking.
 
joab said:
Here we go again
A suspect makes a claim against a government worker and it is assumed true.

He could have said bomb
He could have muttered pump with an accent that made it sound like pump
But his attorney and he says that he said pump, so it must be true and the government must be lying.
Click to expand...


Is a TSA worker a sworn law enforcement officer? Are they like Robocop, where their memory is admissible in a court of law? Aren't prosecutors required to PROVE, BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT, that a defendant is guilty?

How was it PROVED that he said, "Bomb," jokingly or not? How can anyone PROVE what words came out of someone's mouth once they have dissipated into the air?

Why is it reasonable to think that a guy with no demonstrated ties to terrorism, traveling with his penis pump and his mother, would decide to say he had a bomb? Even if this matter was not resolved at the time of the incident, surely it could have been explained away in court, where the guy's attorney would say, "Your honor, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, surely it is a reasonable doubt that when this young man said, 'pump' under his breath, it might have sounded like 'bomb' to the screener, but was not in fact 'bomb' whether joking or otherwise."


-azurefly
 
joab said:
Would the same people be snickering at the officer if she had made the same speculation last month about an out of the ordinary liquid filled object.
I know the same people will be here condeming the TSA when something gets through.
Click to expand...

OMG. One has NOTHING to do with the other. Once it was determined that it was a penis pump and not a bomb, there was no fear of there being a danger to the traveling public. And once it was understood that this guy has an accent (I presume), it should have been clear that he may well really be telling the truth that he said, "PUMP" but was misheard as saying "BOMB."


joab said:
Anyone that travels through airport security with embarrassing objects these days is a moron and deserves extra scrutiny, especially when they start figetting and whispering out of the corner of their mouth to their traveling partner
Click to expand...

You don't even have an accurate understanding of the scene! What i get from the article is that he tried to whisper it TO THE SCREENER, because he was EMBARRASSED to say it was a pump in front of his mother! How did you not get that from all the surrounding context, joab??

And why should carrying embarrassing objects merit scrutiny as though one is a threat?
That's an intellectually bankrupt position for sure.

"You are carrying something that while not illegal or contraband, is out of the ordinary and embarrassing, so we are going to give you a hard time as though you were carrying a dangerous, threatening item." :rolleyes:

Embarrassing items warrant extra scrutiny as a terror suspect, huh? And an expensive and time/resources-consuming trial over NOTHING. Great job, joab.


-azurefly
 
joab said:
Anyone that travels through airport security with embarrassing objects these days is a moron and deserves extra scrutiny, especially when they start figetting and whispering out of the corner of their mouth to their traveling partner
Click to expand...
I usually wear a Rolex.
I, almost invariably, declare firearms.
Am I next?

Just who's standards are applicable to "embarrassing objects"? Yours? Mine? The Las Vegas performer? Bill O'Reilly? Alan Colmes?
What ever happened to the word "diversity" in this growing "gotta look like everyone else" culture?
Rich
 
Just who's standards are applicable to "embarrassing objects"? Yours? Mine? The Las Vegas performer? Bill O'Reilly? Alan Colmes?
What ever happened to the word "diversity" in this growing "gotta look like everyone else" culture?
Click to expand...

Who's standards? Your own. You should not be taking in your carry-on luggage any item(s) that you would not be prepared to explain to a TSA agent in a clear voice at normal volume, as well as any item you would be embarassed for your travelling companion(s) to find out about. Other than that, take what you want...you set your own standard. There's absolutely nothing wrong with taking a penis pump, just as long as you would be willing to explain it clearly and without embarassment. Or at least clearly.

But I also agree with azurefly...a case like this should never see the inside of a courtroom. The guy's a moron, not a criminal.
 
Forgive me for asking, I didn't pay much attention at the time, but are these the same folks that busted Limpbaugh for having Viagra?:confused:

badbob
 
Aww man...

I hope John Stewart gets his hands on this article and televises it. What a joke! In the words of Austin Powers, "DO AH MAYKE YOO HOWNY BAYBEE?!"


Epyon
 
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