Rep. Victoria Spartz was charged with a weapons violation at Dulles International Airport outside Washington after officials found a firearm in her carry-on luggage.
A Transportation Security Administration official confirmed to The Washington Times that Ms. Spartz, Indiana Republican, was charged on Friday after TSA officers found a .380 caliber firearm during a passenger security screening as she boarded a flight to Europe.
According to TSA, the firearm was unloaded and in Ms. Spartz’s carry-on bag.
“Last Friday, Rep. Spartz accidentally carried an empty handgun in her suitcase with no magazine or bullets, which she did not realize was in the pocket of her suitcase, while going through security at Dulles Airport,” said Ms. Spartz’s district director, JP Etchison. “She was issued a citation and proceeded on her international flight to the OSCE PA meeting in Europe.”
Airline passengers who want to travel with their firearms must pack their unloaded weapons into a hard-sided locked container that can be placed inside checked baggage.
However, the firearms must be declared at the airline ticket counter upon arrival. Firearms and ammunition are not allowed in carry-on bags or one’s person on commercial airliners.
Firearms are prohibited at security checkpoints, in the secure area of an airport and in the passenger cabin of an aircraft, even if a passenger has a concealed carry permit or is in a constitutional carry jurisdiction.
TSA does not confiscate or seize firearms. If a passenger brings a firearm to the security checkpoint on their person or in their carry-on luggage, the officer will contact local law enforcement to safely unload and take possession of the firearm.
Law enforcement officers also may arrest or cite the passenger, depending on local law. TSA may impose a civil penalty of up to $15,000.
On the first offense, passengers who bring a firearm to a security checkpoint will lose TSA PreCheck® eligibility for five years. Second offenses will result in permanent disqualification from the program and additional civil penalties.
Ms. Spartz, 45, is running for her third term after winning an eight-person primary. She is the House’s first and sole Ukrainian-born lawmaker.
The last lawmaker to face a similar charge is former Rep. Madison Cawthorn, North Carolina Republican, who pleaded guilty last year to bringing a loaded handgun through a TSA checkpoint at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport in 2022.
Mr. Cawthorn was fined $250, without probation, and his firearm was returned.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.
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