The Justice Department has instructed the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to halt most searches of passengers at airports and other mass transit hubs. An independent investigation revealed that DEA task forces were not properly documenting searches and lacked adequate training, increasing the risk of constitutional violations and legal action.
The deputy attorney general issued a directive on November 12 to suspend “consensual encounter” searches at airports, except in cases related to ongoing criminal investigations. This action followed a draft memorandum from the Justice Department Office of Inspector General (OIG) highlighting longstanding concerns about the DEA’s use of paid airline informants and vague criteria for selecting passengers for searches.
The OIG investigation uncovered that the DEA had paid substantial sums to an airline employee for providing tips that led to cash seizures, with the majority of these seizures not resulting in criminal charges. This has prompted criticism from civil liberties organizations, accusing the DEA of misusing civil asset forfeiture laws.
The OIG memo, now publicly available, raised alarms about inadequate training and documentation within the DEA, posing risks of improper conduct, violation of travelers’ rights, and wastage of law enforcement resources.
Advocacy groups, including the Institute for Justice, welcomed the OIG findings, which align with their concerns about the DEA’s airport forfeiture practices. The Institute for Justice is currently involved in a class action lawsuit challenging these practices.
The OIG investigation was triggered by a video released by the Institute for Justice, showing a DEA search of an airline passenger, David C., at an airport without his consent. The passenger was flagged based on dubious criteria set by a paid airline employee.
Despite the DEA’s justification for targeting travelers, the OIG emphasized that common behaviors like last-minute ticket purchases are not inherently suspicious.
The DEA’s reliance on informants, loose search criteria, and civil asset forfeiture laws has enabled them to seize significant amounts of money from passengers, even when there is no evidence of criminal activity.
Previous reports have highlighted the DEA’s extensive cash seizures at airports, with a large portion of these seizures never resulting in criminal charges. This has raised concerns about the agency’s focus on asset forfeiture over legitimate law enforcement objectives.
Efforts to reform DEA practices, such as Sens. Ron Wyden and Cynthia Lummis’ call to restrict travel employees from sharing passenger information without proper authorization, have gained traction.
While the Justice Department’s directive is a step towards curbing abusive searches, advocates like Dan Alban stress the need for legislative reforms to prevent future abuses of civil asset forfeiture by the DEA.
The DEA’s response to these developments remains pending.
