JOHN KIRIAKOU: Know Your Rights. Don't Talk to Cops at the Airport
August 28, 2020
When an ICE officer stopped me after I got off the plane I knew the
harassment was about to begin. But I was ready for it.
(Teagasc, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons)
By John Kiriakou
Special to Consortium News
I confess to a dislike of the police; any police at any level. I dislike
equally local cops, state troopers, federal law enforcement from a myriad of
agencies and prison guards. I've always said, "Give a man a badge and a gun
and you've created a monster." I also believe that my opinion about law
enforcement in the United States is in the minority.
Most Americans like and trust the police. We're bombarded on social media
by exhortations to "Back the Blue!" We say "thank you for your service"
along with the military at sporting events. I'm something of a "progressive
constitutionalist." I believe in freedom, equality, and individual rights.
I'm not going to back the blue.
I had the pleasure of flying back to the United States this week from an
overseas trip. The airline socially distanced passengers, so I had an
entire row all to myself. It was one of the easiest flights I've had in
recent memory. I arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport after 10
hours in the air and was happy to be home. I have an app on my phone called
"Mobile Pass" that allows me to put my passport, flight information and
photograph in the Immigration and Customs Enforcement system so that I can
just breeze through Immigration and go on to baggage claim. It saves a lot
of time.
'Come with Me Sir'
Inside security checkpoint of Terminal 8 at New York's JFK International
Airport. (Martin St-Amant, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons)
I got off the plane at JFK having already completed the Mobile Pass and I
went directly to the very short line for Mobile Pass holders. The ICE
officer was very nice, but after he scanned my passport, he said, "Please
come with me, sir. We're going to have you talk to one of my colleagues."
I'm not stupid. I know what that means. It means "let the harassment
begin." But I was ready for it.
I was placed in secondary inspection, where I sat for about 25 minutes.
Finally, an ICE agent named Officer Oh called my name. He was assisted by
Officers Hippolyte and Castellano. Apparently, it takes three armed people
to deal with me.
"Have you ever been arrested for a crime?" I wasn't surprised that was the
first question. I've said consistently over the past eight years that I
wear my conviction for blowing the whistle on the CIA's torture program like
a badge of honor. I said so on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News and NBC's Today Show.
It's no secret.
My response was, "You know I have been. You otherwise wouldn't ask me a
stupid question like that, which has literally nothing whatsoever to do with
my travel today." The ICE agents looked at each other. "What was the
nature of your crime?" Oh responded. I think he also didn't expect my own
response.
"I'm going to tell you guys exactly the same thing that I tell your friends
at Dulles Airport when they harass me. I'm represented by counsel. I don't
talk to cops. You have no right to detain me. I'm a journalist and I'm
going to write about this incident using your true names. And you have no
legal right to keep me from entering my own country."
'Free to Go'
Again they looked at each other. Finally, Oh said, "you're free to go."
You're damn right I am.
I called my attorney as soon as I got out of baggage claim. He told me that
I did the right thing and that he wouldn't have given answers any different
from the answers I gave. It occurred to me, though, that most Americans
have no idea what their rights are.
The American Civil Liberties Union has a great article on its website
telling people what to do when they are confronted by tin horn authority at
airports around America. The bottom line is that if you are an American
citizen or a permanent resident (green card holder) you don't have to answer
any questions.
ICE can delay you, but they cannot stop you from entering your own country.
Tell them that. Repeat it as a mantra if you have to. And remember my
personal mantra. It works:
"I'm represented by counsel. I don't talk to cops. You have no right to
detain me."
Cops are tough when they can hide behind each other, behind their guns,
behind their badges, or behind qualified immunity. But they're powerless
when faced with the power of the Constitution. Know your rights.
