Once you’re airside at any airport governed by the United States, it’s against federal regulations to have a gun in your possession. You’re allowed to have one landside, but, with few exceptions (ATL is one of the exceptions), only in your checked luggage. And even then, it’s only allowed on airport property if it’s unloaded, locked in a hard-sided container, and declared to the airline during check-in.
Despite these laws, people still try to bring their guns with them – on their person or in their carry-on or personal bag – through airports every single day. In fact, the TSA said that in 2024 alone, 6,678 firearms were intercepted, 94% of which were loaded.
The Continuing Problem: Guns in Airports
Many of the people caught with a firearm say they forgot they had it with them. Call me a Pollyanna, but I honestly believe that some people are so used to carrying their gun(s) with them that they honestly DO forget. In fact, we have a friend who is a gun enthusiast who carries daily. They pretty much agreed, to an extent. They said:
I don’t carry a gun “off body”. I don’t carry a gun in a briefcase, purse, or fanny pack so this is all conjecture. I can see how a businessman who carries in his briefcase or a woman who carries in a purse everyday can forget that they have a firearm. I’m not excusing them but I understand. I do not understand how someone who carries “on body” can forget they have a gun when going through TSA. When I fly, I pat myself down before we leave the house and again before we go through security.
As for the rest of them who were caught, you know, the ones who brought their firearms to the airport on purpose, I don’t know how, in this day and age, people think they can get away with getting through the checkpoint with one. Yet it happened over 18 times per day last year, so there ya go. (To be fair, some guns DO get through the checkpoint. I strongly suspect those are the occasional exceptions, not the norm).
A Close Call: TSA Officer Caught with Firearm
Of course, if there is one person who should know better than to bring a gun to the airside of an airport, it’s a TSA officer. But that didn’t seem to stop one TSA Officer out of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport recently.
Multiple outlets are reporting that a TSA Officer was arrested at ATL last week after police received a report about an officer with a firearm beyond the security checkpoint. Let that settle in – they caught him with the gun BEYOND THE SECURITY CHECKPOINT!
The Atlanta Police Department’s press release said that the officer was charged with reckless conduct:
TSA Officer Arrested: 6000 North Terminal Parkway
250218019
Post Date:01/24/2025 12:11 PM
On January 21, 2025, Atlanta Police Officers responded to the TSA main checkpoint in reference to a TSA Officer with a firearm beyond the security checkpoint. Officers arrested 58-year-old Matthew Gilbert and charged him with reckless conduct. He was transported to the Clayton County Jail without incident.
According to Fox 5 Atlanta, Gilbert was taken to Clayton County Jail and released on bond. Fox 5 also said that Gilbert hasn’t been the only airport employee carrying firearms; the report that police say dozens have been caught.
Awesomesauce.
The Law Enforcement Exception
The only TSA employees allowed to carry firearms at airports are law enforcement officers (a.k.a. LEOs) such as criminal investigators, Federal Air Marshals, Assistant Federal Security Directors, and security specialists. Those employees are issued a badge and credentials authorizing them to carry firearms. They also must complete the required TSA training and maintain proficiency in using firearms they are allowed to carry.
Gilbert was not a LEO.
A TSA spokesperson said:
TSA is aware of the arrest of an officer at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) on Tuesday morning. TSA has zero tolerance for misconduct on or off duty and the officer involved has been removed from screening status, placed on leave pending further action, based on resolution of the case. Passenger and employee safety is top priority for TSA, and we are working closely with our Atlanta Airport Police partners on this incident.
Many thanks to NJ for his help with this piece.
Feature photo (cropped): Cory Doctorow // flickr // CC BY-SA 2.0
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