TEXAS: House Bans "Offensive" Patdowns By Airport Security

The GOP-dominated Texas House has made it a crime to touch your junk during an airport security patdown.

Approved late Thursday night, the measure makes it illegal for anyone conducting searches to touch “the anus, sexual organ, buttocks, or breast of another person” including through clothing. It also prohibits searches “that would be offensive to a reasonable person.” The bill’s chief sponsor is Republican Rep. David Simpson, who said, “this has to do with dignity and travel, and prohibiting indecent, groping searches.” He believes it will keep Transportation Security Administration officials from treating travelers like criminals, though the measure may be superseded by federal law.