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

[joab]

"He told her it's a pump," attorney Eileen O'Neill-Burke said

Judge Gerald Winiecki decided there was enough evidence f

A judge who heard both sides of the case believes that there is merit to the officers case, but as usual the same certain TFLers side with the trial lawyer for the defendant.

s 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?

Trials are designed for establishing proof of guilt or innocence, hearing are for determining if there is enough evidence to go to trial. The judge determined that there was, despite what the defense attorney thought or said

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."

The guy's attorney likely did say those things, the judge didn't believe him

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."

Like OMG fer sure, it does.
I merely speculated on the accent. Seems like you will jump on any speculation in the favor of facts

You don't even have an accurate understanding of the scene!

Read my initial comments on your understanding of the "trial"

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

Juan gets it why can't you.

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

I said that where?
Anybody that doesn't realize that your personal item will be scrutinized as a matter of routine while flying is a moron.
If it is something that causes you to act suspicious when it is discovered as a part of this common routine then you are going to be scrutinized.

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

Check with JuanCarlos, he seems to have been paying attention

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 embarrassed for your traveling companion(s) to find out about.

Bottom line a judge heard the evidence from both sides and determined that there was sufficient cause to proceed to trial, but the geniuses here listen to another short article and take the word of the trial lawyer as gospel even though not one of you were in the courtroom to hear both sides.
Great job right back attcha

 

[hoji]

I believe he said "pump"
Ask someone from the Middle East who speaks with an accent to whisper "pump" and in a crowded noisy enviroment{ airport anyone} it could very well sound like "bomb"
You out there who are cop fluffers, I am sure there are some government goon cheerleader forums out there ,go find them.

 

[ahenry]

This forum is really getting tiresome to read

I read a news article shortly after this event and the defendant himself stated that he was embarrassed to say he had a penis pump, so he told TSA it was a bomb. Since the Sun Times article really only states the side of the defense attorney you can read this article for a bit more information.

I mean really guys. I had a heads up on the possible discrepancy in the passengers’ statements because I had read an article stating the other side already. Honestly though, even the smallest amount of critical thinking skills would have suggested a brief search through google or something equivalent, which would have turned up more than a few hits offering more information, and even provided the tidbit of information that the TSA person (what are they, Agents?) asked him to repeat what he said to a supervisor. Which he did, and supposedly the supervisor also heard the word “bomb”. I’m not familiar with what one of those pumps looks like, and so if somebody told me a component of one was a bomb I’d probably be inclined to believe him. Especially if I asked him to repeat what he said and he again said bomb. Seriously, some of you people are so incredibly wrapped up in your desire to belittle anything having to do with the United States’ anti or counter terrorism actions that you can’t even think with the skill level of somebody in grade school.

 

[CDH]

Directly from the article: "It's normal," he said. "Half of America they use it."

Hey, wait a minute. Since America is about half men and half women, and there's no reason for a woman to have one of those contraptions, then does he think that EVERY man in America ("half of America") has one?

I know they're popular among judges ( http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060818/D8JJ3HLO0.html ), but c'mon, man...
I honestly wouldn't know one if I saw one.

Carter

 

[v8fbird]

Originally Posted by joab
"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"



Even more so because he had brown skin, right?

You're all for sending a kid to prison for 3 years because he owns a penis pump? That's how you think Americans need to be protected from "terrorists"?

 

[v8fbird]

"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."



REALLY. What if someone has diabetes and doesn't want his friends to know because they'd make fun of him? Should he just not bring his insulin with him?

How about a person taking medication for AIDS? Should he have to make that fact public?

Let's say a post-menopausal woman had breast cancer and had a breast removed. Let's say she wears a fake piece in her bra and happens to have one in her carry on. Should she be forced to share that fact with her business traveling companions and the entire airport general public?

Do you really think that ONLY CRIMINALS have secrets?



Comments like yours, quite simply, DISGUST ME.

 

[jcoiii]

This forum is really getting tiresome to read

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I read a news article shortly after this event and the defendant himself stated that he was embarrassed to say he had a penis pump, so he told TSA it was a bomb. Since the Sun Times article really only states the side of the defense attorney you can read this article for a bit more information.

I mean really guys. I had a heads up on the possible discrepancy in the passengers’ statements because I had read an article stating the other side already. Honestly though, even the smallest amount of critical thinking skills would have suggested a brief search through google or something equivalent, which would have turned up more than a few hits offering more information, and even provided the tidbit of information that the TSA person (what are they, Agents?) asked him to repeat what he said to a supervisor. Which he did, and supposedly the supervisor also heard the word “bomb”. I’m not familiar with what one of those pumps looks like, and so if somebody told me a component of one was a bomb I’d probably be inclined to believe him. Especially if I asked him to repeat what he said and he again said bomb. Seriously, some of you people are so incredibly wrapped up in your desire to belittle anything having to do with the United States’ anti or counter terrorism actions that you can’t even think with the skill level of somebody in grade school.

I guess noone decided to read your article. Oh, and by the way, it is a federal offense to say you have a bomb in an airport. DUH!

 

[CelticMP]

regretfully

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

For once i am actually going to agree with Azurefly. I understand it is a Federal Offense to say the Bomb in a airport or on a plane. I can see him being too embarassed to say what it was in front of his mother. But to actually say it was a bomb to save embarassment...... I will take My Penis Pump and Me for 500 Alex

 

[azurefly]

I read a news article shortly after this event and the defendant himself stated that he was embarrassed to say he had a penis pump, so he told TSA it was a bomb.

Mardin Azad Amin found himself in a tight squeeze last week when security at O'Hare Airport discovered a suspicious-looking object in his luggage.

So Amin, 29, handled the delicate situation this way: He told security the object was a bomb, Cook County prosecutors said.

The security guard then asked Amin to repeat what he'd said to a supervisor. This time, Amin was chuckling as he spoke, prosecutors said.

In fact, Amin was trying to disguise the fact that the black object -- resembling a grenade -- was a component for a penis pump.

AHenry, didn't you say that the article you linked established that the defendant himself admitted he said he had a bomb because he was embarrassed to admit he had a penis pump? The article doesn't say any such thing. It simply states that PROSECUTORS claim he told security the object was a bomb. (The prosecutors weren't there, by the way.)

Nice way to misrepresent what the article says. And you expect to have credibility?


-azurefly

 

[ahenry]

AHenry, didn't you say that the article you linked established that the defendant himself admitted he said he had a bomb because he was embarrassed to admit he had a penis pump?

Nope, I in no way said that the article I linked to was the one that had a quote by the defendant. I can see how you would misinterpret my comment to mean that since I didn’t really clarify one way or the other. What I did say was that I had read an article early on that included a comment by the defendant stating that he was embarrassed to say he had a penis pump in front of his mother.

I was unable to find that particular article (actually I just didn’t really feel like digging for it when it doesn’t really matter), so I linked to one that at least presented the prosecutions allegations rather than just alluding to them like the Sun Times article. No misrepresentation meant.

 

[joab]

I was in a hurry this morning when I posted and missed a few comments

I usually wear a Rolex.
I, almost invariably, declare firearms.
Am I next?

Are you embarrassed by your Rolex or firearms to the point that you would whisper and get fidgety about having them?
If not what could that statement possibly have to do with the statement I made?

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

And how does it remotely counter it?

Is a TSA worker a sworn law enforcement officer?

Beats me, are they, and what does that have to do with my statement.
I don't recall making any references to LEO in that comment.

Are they like Robocop, where their memory is admissible in a court of law?

No, I think that was Perter Weller.
Is he with the TSA now? Cause I don't remember making any RoboCop statements either, or any comments about the memory banks of the average TSA agent.
I see that you're still having trouble sticking to actual comments in favor of pointless attacks.

Aren't prosecutors required to PROVE, BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT, that a defendant is guilty?

Isn't that the point of a trial. You know the thing that the article clearly states is what the hearing was to determine if there was cause to proceed with RBAY

You out there who are cop fluffers, I am sure there are some government goon cheerleader forums out there ,go find them.

Is that because we have errantly wandered onto a simple and close minded group of cop haters or just because you don't like to think and see other opinions other than those of your choir

Even more so because he had brown skin, right?
You're all for sending a kid to prison for 3 years because he owns a penis pump? That's how you think Americans need to be protected from "terrorists"?

We have another pledge for the Twisty-Boy fraternity.
Where have I mentioned his skin color?
Where has any sentence been handed down and where have I agreed with it?
Save the race baiting BS for the mirror.
My record speaks for itself here, even those that hate me can not honestly agree with your lame ass assessment of my views on that subject.

What I find slightly humorous is that an article written favorably towards the defendant is taken definitive proof, but ahenry's more TSA friendly article is met with the scrutiny that the first should also have been met with

Tis predictable tis sad, tis sad tis predictable

 

[IZinterrogator]

For those who are curious and don't speak Arabic, here's a quick lesson: There is no "p" in Arabic. An Arab who speaks English as a second language will usually pronounce "p" as "b", thereby turning a "pump" into a "bumb". The second "b" won't be silent like it is in "dumb". If anyone wants more Arabic lessons, or needs them such as those who work for TSA, I'll be here drinking my Bebsi and thinking about ordering bizza for dinner.

 

[jcoiii]

Pronunciation is irrelevant if the defendant made a statement confirming that he said "bomb"

 

[IZinterrogator]

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.

Mardin Azad Amin found himself in a tight squeeze last week when security at O'Hare Airport discovered a suspicious-looking object in his luggage.

So Amin, 29, handled the delicate situation this way: He told security the object was a bomb, Cook County prosecutors said.

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.

Pronunciation is irrelevant if the defendant made a statement confirming that he said "bomb"

What statement would that be? The one where he said that he would never utter the word bomb while going through security or the one where he stated he whispered "pump" out of the side of his mouth? Or the one where the prosecutors said he stated he had a bomb?

Reading is fundamental.

 

[jcoiii]

Reading is fundamental.

Yeah, i read it. You choose to believe the person over the prosecutor as well as the TSA agents. Fine. But the idiotic insult couched in humor is entirely unnecessary.

And speaking of reading, did you notice the two letter word "if" in my statement?

 

[Doubletaptap]

I'm still trying to figure how the hell a supposedly adult,trained screener could not recognize a rubber bulb and the other parts as some kind of air or vacuum pumping device?
And what would make it look like anything menacing?
Good God, these airport "attacks" are getting to be some of the stupidest farces I have ever heard of.

I guess now that dubya has won the war on terror in Israel and Lebanon,he will win it again now in the airports with his trusty well trained agents?

 

[JuanCarlos]

Yeah, i read it. You choose to believe the person over the prosecutor as well as the TSA agents. Fine. But the idiotic insult couched in humor is entirely unnecessary.

We aren't talking about about who we believe. You suggested that the defendant made a statement that he did not...or at least no reports suggest he made. Oh, but...

And speaking of reading, did you notice the two letter word "if" in my statement?

Sure, but use of the word "if" does not mean you can make any argument without it being backed up in reality and nobody can call you on it. Sure, none of this would be relevant "if" the defendant had made a statement confirming he said bomb. "If" my mom was a dude she'd be my dad. "If" you were into kiddie-porn you'd be a pedophile. So what?

You want somebody to call you on it without resorting to insults veiled in humor? Fine.

In the future please refrain from making arguments that have no basis in reality. Especially refrain from using such arguments in an attempt to dismiss an interesting point another poster has made. Regardless of whether the argument is made A) out of ignorance, as IZint claimed or B) intentionally, as you claimed, it wastes people's time.

 

[azurefly]

I would really like to see a transcript of the explanation Amin gave at his hearing.

Either he admitted that he said "bomb" out of embarrassment that it was a penis pump, or he did not.

We have ahenry's say-so about having read some other article (sadly, not the one he linked to) in which Amin admitted that he said "bomb". The article that we can read says that Amin said, after his hearing, that he would never say "bomb" to a security screener.

Did he supposedly say that after admitting the exact opposite in the actual hearing?

What I did say was that I had read an article early on that included a comment by the defendant stating that he was embarrassed to say he had a penis pump in front of his mother.

Yes, he was embarrassed to say he had a penis pump in front of his mother -- which would be consistent with his story, which is that he muttered the word "PUMP" out of the side of his mouth so as to not get busted by dear old mom! What you wrote here does not establish a claim that because of his embarrassment over admitting it was a PUMP, he said it was a BOMB! Only that he was embarrassed.

We already know that embarrassment drove Amin to do what he did.
Now, did the embarrassment drive him to try to say "pump" without his mother hearing it?
Or did the embarrassment drive him to say "bomb" just so he wouldn't have to say "pump"?

For you people who think he really did say "bomb": why does it make sense to you that the guy would think, "Hey, this'll cause me less trouble than admitting it's a penis pump!"??


-azurefly

 

[IZinterrogator]

You choose to believe the person over the prosecutor as well as the TSA agents.

Yes, I did. Because the prosecutor was not there. Because the TSA agent probably doesn't how Arabs pronounce things in English as well as I do, having almost ten years of experience speaking Arabic and working with Arabs, including two years of living in the Middle East. Because the supervisor probably has the same amount of knowledge about how Arabs pronounce "p" as the agent who sounded the alarm in the first place. And because the prosecution's claim that he would say bomb instead of pump to avoid embarrassment is about the most asinine thing I have ever heard ever uttered in a courtroom. But hey, what's almost ten years of experience with Arabs who speak English as a second language and a belief that one is innocent until proven guilty in this country count for? Apparently nothing in this post-9/11 world where if an Arab can be charged for something terrorist-related without any evidence except for an ignorant government agent's word, he should be. :barf:

And yes, I did read where you said if. And the statement that pronunciation doesn't matter if he stated he had a bomb implies he made some sort of statement to that effect, so it was right to hold him. Still, no one has shown that he did mean to say "bomb" instead of "bumb", including the prosecutor who can't realistically back that up without a recorded statement taken at the scene.

 

[jcoiii]

Sure, none of this would be relevant "if" the defendant had made a statement confirming he said bomb.

Which is exactly what I said.

Pronunciation is irrelevant if the defendant made a statement confirming that he said "bomb"

Now, if we can get confirmation that the guy said "bomb" then it's a no brainer. If there is no confirmation, it comes down to who do you believe. The kid or the TSA agent.