The federal district court in Minnesota has dismissed Jesse Ventura’s lawsuit challenging TSA patdowns and pornoscanners as violations of the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.
For those who are interested, here’s the court’s decision. It’s nothing too exciting; the court just says that the law required him to take his challenge directly to the Court of Appeals. I don’t expect he’ll fare much better there, since the federal courts almost never place any restrictions on the federal government, especially when it invokes “national security.”
Too bad Jesse’s not governor now — he’s one of the only politicians who (unlike Rick Perry) might have the backbone to tell the TSA to get out of his state.
UPDATE: Ventura held a press conference today. He says he might not appeal: “If I appeal it, they’ll get federally paid judges to squash it.” Among other interesting things, he also adds: “I will never stand for a national anthem again. I will turn my back and raise a fist the same way Tommy Smith and John Carlos did in the ’68 Olympics, Jesse Ventura will do that today.”
6:51 am on November 4, 2011
