Department of Justice Suspends Controversial Airport Interdictions After Viral Footage Showing DEA Agents Threatening, Abusing Innocent Traveler

ARLINGTON, Va.—Today, the Department of Justice suspended the Drug Enforcement Administration’s controversial practice of having agents intercept travelers, interrogate them, and insist on searching their bags in what the agency calls “consensual encounters.” That suspension comes on the heels of an Office of the Inspector General report, also issued today, that criticizes the practice and refers to shocking footage of one traveler’s experience, which the Institute for Justice (IJ) released on YouTube in July.

“Today’s OIG report confirms what we’ve been saying for years about predatory DEA practices at airports, and the allegations in our nationwide class-action lawsuit against DEA over these abuses,” said IJ Senior Attorney Dan Alban. “We welcome DOJ’s suspension of this program as a first step, but policy directives can be changed at any time, under this or future administrations. We call on Congress to pass the FAIR Act to permanently reform federal civil forfeiture laws to end the profit incentive, close the equitable sharing loophole, and to guarantee every property owner receives their day in court by ending so-called administrative forfeitures.”

IJ is currently suing the Drug Enforcement Administration and Transportation Security Administration over their airport seizure and forfeiture practices. The lawsuit, from three travelers and a class of people who had their property seized, is currently in discovery: https://ij.org/case/dea-tsa-forfeitures/.

In addition to lawsuits to protect travelers who had their property seized, IJ advocates for legislation that would end the profit incentive that fuels unconstitutional searches. In the recent Congress, the House Judiciary Committee unanimously approved legislation to reform federal civil forfeiture, H.R. 1525, the Fifth Amendment Integrity Restoration (FAIR) Act. Among many reforms in the bill, the FAIR Act would send all forfeiture funds to the U.S. Treasury general fund rather than funds controlled directly by law enforcement agencies.