If You Are About To Board A Plane, Be Afraid.....Of The Police
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Sometimes we cannot see the forest through the trees. This is acceptable if you are merely walking through the trees with your casual acquaintances in the Audubon Society looking at all the pretty birds. But, when you are on the front line of an Infantry Division and the trees are trip wires amidst a forest of Bouncing Betties and AP Landmines, you might want to pay attention to the little things.
It’s Thursday morning and here I am drinking my eight dollar Diet- Mega- Mocha -Mucho -Cappuccino Half Caff with light whip and imitation sugar at the local coffee shop with my Los Angeles Times Newspaper. I’m midway through the California Section when my diaphragm (the anatomy kind, not the contraceptive – which in it of itself would be blog worthy, being that I am a man, and sitting in a coffee shop with a contraceptive would be slightly weird, but I digress…) is overpowered with a sudden utterance of laughter and bewilderment that replaces my ability to swallow my caffeinated cocaine concoction, thus causing nasal lactating. Or in laymen’s terms, “milk shot out of my nose.”
The title of the article Man Charged as Fake Marshal.
(Summary, as written by staff writer at the LA Times): A Southern California man has been arrested on suspicion of posing as a federal marshal to kidnap a distant cousin’s wife and put her on a plane to the Philippines, police said Wednesday.
Wearing a fake badge and shirt imprinted with “U.S. Federal Agent,” Gregory Denny, 37, turned up at the Hemet home of his family member on January 15.
Displaying what turned out to be a pellet gun; Denny reportedly handcuffed a female at the house and told the couple, that the female was being deported.
Police officials said Denny drove the female to the Border Protection Agency in Murrieta and attempted to hand her over to authorities. When he was told that there was no warrant for her in the system, Denny returned the woman to her house in Hemet and directed her husband to go on the internet and purchase an airline ticket for the woman, to her home country.
Police were told Denny drove the woman to San Diego International Airport, where he flashed his fake badge to get through security. He escorted her to the departure gate, took off the handcuffs and watched her board the plane to San Francisco en route to Manila, where she remains.
“This person is not and never was employed by the U.S. Marshal Service, and as far as we can ascertain, has never been employed by any law enforcement agency in any capacity,” the Hemet Police Department said in a statement.
Police arrested Denny last month on suspicion of kidnapping, false imprisonment, impersonating a peace officer, burglary and false arrest. He was released on $50,000 bail and is expected in court on Feb. 16.
The Riverside County district attorney’s office is considering whether to file charges. The police notified the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, Border Protection and the TSA.
After sponging up the half gallon of nasal milk, I unfolded the LA Times, half expecting to see the Section Title Comics on the first page, and then checked the date to make sure we haven’t slipped into a time vortex and transported from February 3 to April 1. I was disheartened to see that neither wish came true.
This story is amazing on a variety of levels.
Level 1 – (The Personal Level):
As a writer for thePoliticop I am still recovering from the rigorous academy training and probation period that I and all other police officers had to endure, to acquire a POST certification (this is the mandatory certification needed to possess police powers, allowing a person to effect arrest, legally detain, and ultimately take another person’s life, with cause). Achieving this classification is a momentous aspect of my character and has proven to be a proud turning point in my life, 16 years ago. However, I will admit, my face is full of egg, now knowing that all I had to do was purchase a Federal Agent shirt from the local Swap Meet, pick up a pellet gun from the sporting goods store and walk with a swagger, and citizens would still perceive me as “The Law”. But….that was the mistake of one man…. in one town….with no expectations of professionalism or policies, so thePoliticop will let that one slide. Let’s move on to the higher levels.
Level 2 – (The State Level):
Police officials said Denny drove the female to the Border Protection Agency in Murrieta and attempted to hand her over to authorities. When he was told that there was no warrant for her in the system, Denny returned the woman to her house...
The fact that these representatives from the U.S. Customs Border Protection Station in Murrieta are not sitting in front of their review boards on this very day and explaining how and why a man wearing a Wal-Mart issued Federal Agent t-shirt, $2.99 tin-replica badge, and a pellet gun can walk into a government office with another citizen in handcuffs and access their computer systems, is astonishing. If this is the level of professionalism that we can and should expect from the desk officers at this agency, then…be afraid, be very afraid. In proper context, the story should have ended right there, with the headline, Border Patrol Agent Arrest Man for Impersonating a Federal Officer, False Imprisonment and Kidnapping. We hate having to be the judge, jury and executioner, but someone at the Border Protection Station in Murrieta needs a little time out (without pay), and some real one-on-one training.
But a blog without a climactic ending is just a blurb… so off to…
Level 3 – (Federal Flub)
On January 3, 2010, Haison Jiang, 28, of Piscataway, was detained following a breach at the Newark Airport.
Security video from the incident shows an officer of the Federal Transportation Administration who left his post unattended a few minutes after he asked a man in a light colored jacket to stay behind the rope line. Moments later, the man ducks under the rope and walks the wrong way through security to greet a woman, prompting a security breach that shut down Terminal C for hours and forced the rescreening of thousands of passengers. Following the incident, the TSA said the actions of the officer led to the breach.
“We will use this hard lesson to reinforce the sharp focus and tight discipline at all our stations across the country and ensure we maintain the public trust,” spokeswoman Ann Davis said.
Sen. Frank R Lautenberg D-New Jersey commented on the incident, “The message cannot go out to terrorist, people who would do damage to our citizens, that you could take a chance and get in. This has to be seen as the equivalent of a terrible crime.”
Haison Jiang was ultimately identified and apprehended in front of his house in New Jersey.
The incident led to a U.S. Senate Committee hearing on aviation security that featured remarks by U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and former New Jersey Gov. Tom Kean, head of the 9/11 Commission. The incident was described as pure chaos and an embarrassment to the security protocols in an area deemed by the FBI as the most at-risk area for terrorism.
Two weeks after all the hubbub, hoopla and hyperbole, in sunny Southern California, at the San Diego Airport, a mere 19 miles from a foreign country (United States / Mexico Border 19.2 miles from San Diego Airport), Gregory Denny, bearing false identification, a replica handgun and a kidnapped / captive legal representative of the United States, waltzed passed airport security without ceremony, fanfare or concern. In fact, this issue was so miniscule that the Los Angeles Times carried the story two sections into their newspaper among advertisements for Tiffany & Co., Rolex watches, and 23% off all kitchen, bath and vanity fixtures at “the great outdoors.”
As an outspoken citizen and 1/304, 703,510th of the American population, I demand an explanation! Or at least an acknowledgement that I’m not over-reacting and maybe a $20 coupon off my next air travel.
And Now a Personal Message from thePoliticop…
Help us…
that’s all we really want…
Nothing More, Nothing Less.
