The Justice Department has ordered the Drug Enforcement Administration to suspend the practice of searching passengers at airports and seizing their cash after concerns of civil rights violations and potential racial profiling were raised by the department’s internal watchdog. The searches, conducted by DEA agents and local police, involved stopping passengers with last-minute tickets and demanding to search their bags without a warrant.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco ordered the suspension of the searches pending an internal evaluation, citing the risks of improper conduct and violation of legal rights. The DEA has agreed with most of the report’s recommendations but declined to comment.
The inspector general found that passengers who refused to consent to the searches faced de facto threats of missing their flights, leading to involuntary searches and potential seizures of cash through civil forfeiture. The DEA does not collect data on all the people it stops, making it difficult to determine if racial profiling was involved in these searches.
A lawsuit filed by the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit civil liberties law firm, alleges that the DEA and Transportation Security Administration violate airport travelers’ constitutional rights by confiscating their money without probable cause. Incidents of cash seizures by the DEA have been reported in airports across the country, with some cases resulting in the government being ordered to return the money.
These actions have raised concerns about potential abuses of power and violations of civil rights by law enforcement agencies. The Justice Department’s decision to suspend the searches reflects a growing recognition of the need to address these issues and ensure that passengers’ rights are protected during airport screenings.
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