TSA agents confiscate hundreds of guns at Hartsfield, warn travelers ahead of busy weekend
Reports show that about 200 guns have been confiscated this year at Atlanta airport checkpoints
At Hartsfield Jackson Airport, officials say that a total of 200 guns have been confiscated at checkpoints. Officials say that they urge people to not bring their weapons, loaded or not, into the airport.
ATLANTA - Airport officials have a big warning for the more than 1.7 million people will pass through Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport this weekend for Fourth of July celebrations.
That message: do not try taking your gun through security. About 200 have been recovered at the Atlanta airport alone so far this year.
"We have had the most guns caught at security checkpoints than in any other American airport," said Mayor Andre Dickens at a news conference on Monday.
Right before that news conference, TSA agents recovered yet another a checkpoint. Atlanta police said they detained a man and let him go with a warning, after determining it was legal.
Airport officials said of the 200 guns TSA agents have confiscated, 175 were loaded.
This warning comes two weeks after one guy made it past the checkpoint with what appeared to be a gun. The TSA said it’s still trying to figure out what went wrong.
Last year, one went off at checkpoint sending flyers diving for cover.
"This is a criminal act," said Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum. "What we see a lot is this is a forgetful moment of someone rushing to the airport and suddenly they find themselves being the focus of law enforcement attention."
Don’t leave it in the car, either
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said many passengers remember they have a gun on them when they’re already at the airport, so they rush back to their cars and stash them there.
She said people have stolen 44 guns from cars parked at the airport.
"That is a way to give people that are not law-abiding citizens’ guns because your car can be broken into and it can be taken," she said.
How to travel with a gun
There is a way to legally bring a gun on a plane, TSA’s federal security director Robert Spinden explained.
"If you do need to bring your firearm, it needs to be in your checked luggage," Spinden said. "Package in a specific way declared to your airline."
Chief Schierbaum said if travelers follow the guidelines, there won’t be an issue.
"There’s a way to travel with your weapon," he said. "This is not a Second Amendment issue, this is a safety issue ensuring the safety of this airport and our travelers."
Georgia’s new gun law
While the state law doesn’t supersede federal law, FOX 5’s Morse Diggs has reported that under Georgia’s so-called constitutional carry law, airport cops cannot even detain an individual for questioning.
Instead, the officer can ask a passenger to leave the line and "voluntarily" proceed to the police precinct for a debriefing. What customarily follows is a citation and thousands of dollars in civil fines.
Governor Brian Kemp was not present at the news conference at the airport, but Andrew Isenhour, the governor’s deputy director of communications said SB 319 "does not alter who may possess or purchase a firearm, nor does it allow firearms in locations where they were previously prohibited."
DA Willis told FOX 5 the new law does mean lawful gun owners need to be more careful about where they bring them.
"You’re going to be arrested. They tried to be real nice about it, there’s going to be civil penalties. No," Willis said. "If you come through this airport check out with a gun you’re going to be arrested."
A spokesperson for the TSA said anyone caught with a gun on the wrong side of the checkpoint could be charged with felony and misdemeanor crimes, with fines in some cases nearing $14,000.