Cell-phone footage of a hysterical three-year-old girl being frisked by a TSA security worker at a Tennessee airport has sparked outrage since it was posted on the Internet this week and reported on by several mainstream media outlets.
Thing is, the video, which was shot by the girl's father - a reporter for a Houston TV station - is more than two years old.
The footage shows little Mandy Simon sobbing, squirming and screaming "Stop touching me!" as a female TSA employee - her face purposely blurred - pats the girl down while her mother tries to calm her.
Mandy's father, Steve Simon of The CW39 News, aired the grainy, 17-second clip for a first-person report in March 2008 to make a point about how TSA personnel need to be better trained to handle different kinds of passengers.
But the video resurfaced this week at an unfortunate time for the TSA, when many air travelers are in open revolt over such airport security issues as intrusive pat-downs and the use of potentially embarrassing X-ray scanning machines that can see through clothing.
The public's anger against TSA security policies has especially intensified in recent days after a San Diego man recorded his refusal to be searched by TSA employees or pass through a full-body scanner. TSA chief John Pistole also spent the past two days defending the agency before the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
Regarding the video (below), TSA spokesman Jon Allen told the Chattanooga Times Free Press this week that "TSA officers are trained to work with parents to ensure a respectful screening process for the entire family while providing the best possible security for all travelers.
"We reviewed the circumstances surrounding the screening of this family at the time and determined that procedures in place then were followed," wrote Allen.
The incident happened at Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport after Mandy, carrying a Teddy bear, set off an alarm - twice - as she passed throught the metal detector.
Once security took the bear away from her to pass it through an X-ray screening device, the little girl started crying - and it only got worse when the TSA agent started patting her down.
"When that alarm goes off twice, everyone - no matter how old, must be hand-searched," said Simon in his report.
"But did it have to be like this? Is there a better way?" he added. "In my opinion, that TSA employee did not know how to communicate."
rest at http://www.nydailynews.com/travel/2010/11/17/2010-11-17_stop_touching_me_tsas_security_patdown_of_3yearold_girl_caught_on_camera_.html
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