thedrifter
01-09-08, 07:20 AM
Thorough search at PORT COLUMBUS
Airport flags two Marines
Wednesday, January 9, 2008 3:08 AM
By Jeb Phillips
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The parents of two Marines who flew out of Port Columbus on Monday for training said their sons underwent excessive security screening, seemingly because of the uniforms they wore.
But airport security officials said screeners were doing their job when they had the Marines remove some of their uniforms and patted down one of them. That was unusual treatment of service members, who when in uniform often are expedited through security, according to a member of a troop support group.
Pvt. Devon Butler, 18, of the West Side, and Pvt. James Reed, 19, of Gahanna, graduated from boot camp in December. After a month home, they were leaving for Camp Lejeune, N.C., for combat training, their parents said. They wore dress green uniforms that included metal belt buckles, metal tie clasps, metal shirt stays and ribbons with metal backing. They also had "dog tags" around their necks.
Both were made to take off parts of their uniforms after they set off a metal detector. Butler took off his dog tags; Reed was made to stand behind a transparent partition and wait for additional screening. He was searched with a metal-detecting wand at least twice, then patted down.
"Here are active-duty young Marines who have sworn an oath to protect their country," said Ed Butler, Devon Butler's father, "and they are going through all of this at airport security."
Ed Butler retired from the Marine Corps in 2006 after 21 years of service and said he never had to go through that kind of screening. He said Reed was given more scrutiny than his son but that both got more than was necessary.
"My son was good-natured about it, but he couldn't understand why he had to do all of that," said Rita Reed, Reed's mother.
Butler and Reed were traveling with two other new Marines, neither of whom was in uniform. Those Marines didn't receive the same scrutiny as Reed and Butler, their parents said.
There are no security exceptions for military personnel who travel on commercial flights, said Ann Davis, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration. If they are wearing items that set off an alarm, TSA screeners are allowed to conduct additional screening.
Davis said, based on what a reporter told her, it appeared that Port Columbus screeners acted appropriately.
Still, Butler and Reed appeared to have drawn much more security attention than the typical service member, said Roger Bock, president of the Marine Corps Family Support Community, which is based in central Ohio. Port Columbus and its screeners often go out of their way to help troops move through security quickly, he said.
"The airport has been very supportive of the military," Bock said.
Marines understand they must abide by the same rules as other travelers and must obey screeners, even if it means taking off parts of their uniforms, said Sgt. Sharon Fox, a Marine spokeswoman.
jeb.phillips@dispatch.com
Ellie
Airport flags two Marines
Wednesday, January 9, 2008 3:08 AM
By Jeb Phillips
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
The parents of two Marines who flew out of Port Columbus on Monday for training said their sons underwent excessive security screening, seemingly because of the uniforms they wore.
But airport security officials said screeners were doing their job when they had the Marines remove some of their uniforms and patted down one of them. That was unusual treatment of service members, who when in uniform often are expedited through security, according to a member of a troop support group.
Pvt. Devon Butler, 18, of the West Side, and Pvt. James Reed, 19, of Gahanna, graduated from boot camp in December. After a month home, they were leaving for Camp Lejeune, N.C., for combat training, their parents said. They wore dress green uniforms that included metal belt buckles, metal tie clasps, metal shirt stays and ribbons with metal backing. They also had "dog tags" around their necks.
Both were made to take off parts of their uniforms after they set off a metal detector. Butler took off his dog tags; Reed was made to stand behind a transparent partition and wait for additional screening. He was searched with a metal-detecting wand at least twice, then patted down.
"Here are active-duty young Marines who have sworn an oath to protect their country," said Ed Butler, Devon Butler's father, "and they are going through all of this at airport security."
Ed Butler retired from the Marine Corps in 2006 after 21 years of service and said he never had to go through that kind of screening. He said Reed was given more scrutiny than his son but that both got more than was necessary.
"My son was good-natured about it, but he couldn't understand why he had to do all of that," said Rita Reed, Reed's mother.
Butler and Reed were traveling with two other new Marines, neither of whom was in uniform. Those Marines didn't receive the same scrutiny as Reed and Butler, their parents said.
There are no security exceptions for military personnel who travel on commercial flights, said Ann Davis, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration. If they are wearing items that set off an alarm, TSA screeners are allowed to conduct additional screening.
Davis said, based on what a reporter told her, it appeared that Port Columbus screeners acted appropriately.
Still, Butler and Reed appeared to have drawn much more security attention than the typical service member, said Roger Bock, president of the Marine Corps Family Support Community, which is based in central Ohio. Port Columbus and its screeners often go out of their way to help troops move through security quickly, he said.
"The airport has been very supportive of the military," Bock said.
Marines understand they must abide by the same rules as other travelers and must obey screeners, even if it means taking off parts of their uniforms, said Sgt. Sharon Fox, a Marine spokeswoman.
jeb.phillips@dispatch.com
Ellie