Is Your Baby A Terrorist?

Is Your Baby A Terrorist?

Babies Caught Up in 'No-Fly' Confusion By LESLIE MILLER

WASHINGTON (AP) - Infants have been stopped from boarding planes at
airports throughout the U.S. because their names are the same as or
similar to those of possible terrorists on the government's "no-fly
list."

It sounds like a joke, but it's not funny to parents who miss flights
while scrambling to have babies' passports and other documents faxed.

Ingrid Sanden's 1-year-old daughter was stopped in Phoenix before
boarding a flight home to Washington at Thanksgiving.

"I completely understand the war on terrorism, and I completely
understand people wanting to be safe when they fly," Sanden said. "But
focusing the target a little bit is probably a better use of
resources."

The government's lists of people who are either barred from flying or
require extra scrutiny before being allowed to board airplanes grew
markedly since the Sept. 11 attacks. Critics including the American
Civil Liberties Union say the government doesn't provide enough
information about the people on the lists, so innocent passengers can
be caught up in the security sweep if they happen to have the same name
as someone on the lists.

That can happen even if the person happens to be an infant like
Sanden's daughter. (Children under 2 don't need tickets but Sanden
purchased one for her daughter to ensure she had a seat.)

"It was bizarre," Sanden said. "I was hugely pregnant, and I was like,
'We look really threatening.'"

Sarah Zapolsky and her husband had a similar experience last month
while departing from Dulles International Airport outside Washington.
An airline ticket agent told them their 11-month-old son was on the
government list.

They were able to board their flight after ticket agents took a
half-hour to fax her son's passport and fill out paperwork.

"I understand that security is important," Zapolsky said. "But if
they're just guessing, and we have to give up our passport to prove
that our 11-month-old is not a terrorist, it's a waste of their time."

Well-known people like Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga.,
and David Nelson, who starred in the sitcom "The Adventures of Ozzie
and Harriet," also have been stopped at airports because their names
match those on the lists.

The government has sought to improve its process for checking
passengers since the Sept. 11 attacks. The first attempt was scuttled
because of fears the government would have access to too much personal
information. A new version, called Secure Flight, is being crafted.

But for now, airlines still have the duty to check passengers' names
against those supplied by the government. That job has become more
difficult - since the 2001 attacks the lists have swelled from a dozen
or so names to more than 100,000 names, according to people in the
aviation industry who are familiar with the issue. They asked not to be
identified by name because the exact number is restricted information.

Not all those names are accompanied by biographical information that
can more closely identify the suspected terrorists. That can create
problems for people who reserve flights under such names as "T Kennedy"
or "David Nelson."

ACLU lawyer Tim Sparapani said the problem of babies stopped by the
no-fly list illustrates some of the reasons the lists don't work.

"There's no oversight over the names," Sparapani said. "We know names
are added hastily, and when you have a name-based system you don't
focus on solid intelligence leads. You focus on names that are similar
to those that might be suspicious."

The Transportation Security Administration, which administers the
lists, instructs airlines not to deny boarding to children under 12 -
or select them for extra security checks - even if their names match
those on a list.

But it happens anyway. Debby McElroy, president of the Regional Airline
Association, said: "Our information indicates it happens at every major
airport."

The TSA has a "passenger ombudsman" who will investigate individual
claims from passengers who say they are mistakenly on the lists. TSA
spokeswoman Yolanda Clark said 89 children have submitted their names
to the ombudsman. Of those, 14 are under the age of 2.

If the ombudsman determines an individual should not be stopped,
additional information on that person is included on the list so he or
she is not stopped the next time they fly.

Clark said even with the problems the lists are essential to keeping
airline passengers safe.

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