Buddy works for DHS in DC and found with lo0se rounds in backpack Advice for him?

[Daycrawler]

Which is worse, having a few rounds of ammo in your backpack, or leaving your weapon and ammo in a bathroom in the secure area of an airport? Anyone remember this? A Federal Air Marshal did this at the Cleveland Airport. She got a slap on the wrist, didn't even get a reduction of pay. . Probably because she was a she DHS too.

OP this could be an example used to defend himself. It was just an accident...

[chutestrate]

We were talking about this. He's a contractor so it probably won't apply. I've passed along the suggestions here. As of now he's a nervous wreck because there hasn't been any communication from anybody. He's on leave without pay at the moment.

[Jhaydeno]

Your buddy has two distinct issues:

He broke DC law, which he would have done even if the bullets were expelled and he had just empty brass. Were the DC police involved once the ammo was discovered, or just building security?

Apparently he also broke a federal policy, bringing ammo into the building. As noted above, this might be negotiated away at the corporate/DHS level since he didn't have a firearm. If they like him, the work he does, and the firm he works for, he may still have a job. As noted above, clearances are expensive!

If he has DC police issues get a lawyer. The David Gregory defense may really be a viable option. I would also suggest he speak with HR and get a feel for their take on the situation; are they a friend or enemy? They may be his best advocate in discussions with DHS, or they may want to protect a contract. HR doesn't always want to spend the time or money to replace him, and someone at a higher level may see this situation as rediculous as we see it.

[sota]

HR. IS. NEVER. YOUR. FRIEND.
their job isn't to protect/help you; their job is to protect/help the COMPANY that pays them.

[Walleye Hunter]

That's a damn shame, there is just no latitude for honest, harmless mistakes anymore.

[RenoV8]

Time to find a better job. When you work with kids expect to be treated as such.

[RAEIndustries]

You're right Chutestrate and Dennis

[Ricochet]

That's a damn shame, there is just no latitude for honest, harmless mistakes anymore.

Over the past few years my company does the same thing.
Make a mistake on some paperwork? Suspension
A few minutes late to work more than once in a year? Suspension.
Someone says they think you said something "offensive". Suspension.
And our union does absolutely nothing to protect us.

[mmi]

he should not have talked them with out lawyer in the 1st place . get a criminal lawyer to find out what is going on . longer it drags out the better chance the dc commies may find out about .

[MT1]

My buddy is one of those people that if he didn't have bad luck he wouldn't have luck at all. He works in Washington, D.C. He has a top secret clearance, works for DHS and is in a lot of trouble. He had 6 rds of 357 mag in one of the pockets of his backpack which was picked up by the x-ray scanner he has to pass through going to work. He doesn't know how long they were there, but were not picked up until yesterday. This seems to be a layered kind of problem. He has to worry about prosecution by D,C., then some kind of punishment by DHS, and lastly some kind of administrative action by his contracting company. Since this just happened he is beyond stressing out, and I'm wondering if there is anything that could be suggested that he do to protect himself as much as possible.

This was an incredibly dumb thing to do, and he is fully cooperating with the authorities. Unfortunately, he will probably lose his job and clearance. if he doesn't I will be surprised. Any suggestion? All I can think of is for him to call the NRA and try to get an attorney recommendation.

It sounds like he doesn't actually work for DHS but is really a contractor. If he was DHS he may have some protections. Contractors, however; are "at will" employees that work for an agency that is paid to provide a service (anything from janitorial to geospatial intelligence). When a contractor breaks a rule, especially a security violation, they are a concern. This usually results in what is referred to as a derog report (short for derogatory). Derog reports can be generated over mundane events such as bouncing a check for rent. Unfortunately this is a process that needs to happen. The 2013 Navy Yard shooter, Aaron Alexis, would not have had his job at the time of the shooting if his supervisors had done their job and filed derog reports. I totally get that you trust your buddy but he took on a higher level of responsibility when he accepted a job with a TS clearance. He had one job that morning and he screwed it up... that job was gaining access to his work location without presenting as a security risk.

For all those that will come back at me that this "security risk" is bullshit.... This is real. Real world events have proven that those wishing to commit to bad acts will perform test runs. From a security management perspective this is a classic probe of security. Terrorists and criminals will start out slow and small such as trying to get a knife, ammo, toy gun, pepper spray, etc... through the security checks. They try with items that they think can be easily explained away. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize I left that empty Glock mag in my backpack". Lazy/undertrained/uneducated security guards will buy into the excuse. They may confiscate the item but all too many times they let the violator go.

Four years ago there were a whole lot of people on PAFOA asking how Aaron Alexis managed to get a shotgun onto the Wash DC Navy Yard. He took it in piece by piece and round by round over multiple days. He did this intentionally so if he was searched the security guards may miss the item or not recognize the significance.

I'm sorry to hear your friend got jammed up but he should have been more careful. He accepted a job in a work environment that inspects bags. He got complacent and they caught the ammo. The guard that found this deserves some praise. Sure, he/she was performing their job and it's a pretty basic task. For those that have never performed a body search, worked a magnometer or an x-ray I will tell you it isn't as easy as you think. There are hundreds of places to hide items and lots of ways to mask metal signatures. An x-ray (if that was used in this case) is one dimensional. Trying to find stuff in an x-ray image is like trying to read the pattern on a ceramic plate covered in spaghetti.

Like most of us here I spend a lot of time reloading, at the range, or walking the aisles of the gun shows. 90% of my days involve carrying a bag with some kind of shooting related stuff. I have a recurring dream that I go through the security line at the airport and some minimum wage TSA screener finds one of my handguns from a recent range trip. Trust me when I tell you I spend a lot of time inspecting every single corner of my bags when I'm packing for a flight or planning a stop at any number of military installations I find myself at for work. If I don't I'll be that guy worrying about losing my clearance, my commission, my job, the weapon/ammo, and an endless list of other unpleasant business.