Ask Homeland Security to Focus on True Terror Threats
- van: Joy L
- ontvanger: Homeland Security of the United States of America
When British pair, Leigh Van Bryan and pal, Emily Banting, planned a trip to the US, they never expected their time would be spent under arrest, subject to extensive questioning, and subsequently removed from the country entirely.
When Leigh sent a tweet out into the Twitterverse saying, 'Free this week, for quick gossip/prep before I go and destroy America?', he had no idea that US Homeland Security would take his tweet as a direct threat to the country. In fact, that is exactly what they Homeland Security did.
Upon arrival to the US at Los Angeles International Airport, Van Bryan and his accompanying traveler from the UK, Banting, were both detained by armed security. Another tweet by Van Bryan was also brought up that was an obvious quote from the show, Family Guy, and mentioned digging Marilyn Monroe up.
Even though both repeatedly told officials that 'destroy' was slang for partying, they were still subjected to having their bags searched for shovels that they would need to dig Monroe up, questioned and incarcerated for 17 hours, and then immediately put on a flight back home to the UK.
Please ask US Homeland Security to rethink this scary and harrying tactic and to monitor Twitter more efficiently if they believe this is an actual valid source of true terrorist threats.
When British pair, Leigh Van Bryan and pal, Emily Banting, planned a trip to the US, they never expected their time would be spent under arrest, subject to extensive questioning, and subsequently removed from the country entirely.
When Leigh sent a tweet out into the Twitterverse saying, 'Free this week, for quick gossip/prep before I go and destroy America?', he had no idea that US Homeland Security would take his tweet as a direct threat to the country. In fact, that is exactly what they Homeland Security did.
Upon arrival to the US at Los Angeles International Airport, Van Bryan and his accompanying traveler from the UK, Banting, were both detained by armed security. Another tweet by Van Bryan was also brought up that was an obvious quote from the show, Family Guy, and mentioned digging Marilyn Monroe up.
Even though both repeatedly told officials that 'destroy' was slang for partying, they were still subjected to having their bags searched for shovels that they would need to dig Monroe up, questioned and incarcerated for 17 hours, and then immediately put on a flight back home to the UK.
US Homeland Security, please rethink this scary and harrying tactic and find ways to better monitor Twitter more efficiently if this is an actual valid source of true terrorist threats.
