This .38 caliber handgun was detected in a traveler’s carry-on bag at BWI Airport yesterday (November 19th). The woman was arrested on state weapons charges. (TSA photo)
Update: 11/21/15. 8:45 a.m.
A St. Mary’s County, Maryland, woman was arrested by Maryland Transportation Authority police yesterday (November 19) after TSA officers detected a loaded .38 caliber pistol in her carry-on bag at Baltimore Washington International-Thurgood Marshal Airport.
TSA officers who were staffing the checkpoint X-ray machines detected the handgun, loaded with five rounds, inside the Drayden, Maryland, resident’s carry-on bag as it passed along the conveyor belt. An additional 16 loose bullets were also detected in her bag.
TSA officers contacted the Maryland Transportation Authority Police who responded to the checkpoint, confiscated the firearm and arrested the woman on state weapons charges.
Yesterday’s gun marked the 12th firearm that TSA officers have caught at a BWI checkpoint so far this year. TSA officers have detected more than 1,900 firearms at checkpoints nationwide this calendar year. Last year TSA officers detected 1,813 guns at airport checkpoints.
Passengers who bring firearms to the checkpoint are subject to criminal charges from law enforcement and civil penalties from TSA up to $11,000.
Firearms, firearm parts and ammunition—are not permitted in carry-on bags, but can be transported in checked bags if they are unloaded, properly packed and declared to the airline.
TSA has details on how to properly travel with a firearm posted on its web site here: http://www.tsa.gov/traveler-information/firearms-and-ammunition. Airlines may have additional requirements for traveling with firearms and ammunition. Travelers should also contact their airline regarding firearm and ammunition carriage policies.
Original Story
A St. Mary’s County woman was arrested Wednesday after she was found to have a loaded handgun in a carry-on bag at Thurgood Marshall Baltimore-Washington International Airport. Rena Ann Trevett, 51, of Drayden was arraigned in Anne Arundel County District Court in Annapolis after her arrest by U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers. The gun was reportedly loaded with five rounds and she had additional bullets in her bag.
The charge placed in Anne Arundel County, according to the Maryland Judiciary Case Search website was carrying a handgun on her person, a state weapons charge. She was reportedly released on her own recognizance.
According to the TSA website it is legal to carry unloaded guns and bullets in a checked bag but illegal to have then in a carry-on bag or luggage. That includes BB guns and compressed air guns.