by the National Convention – April 2012 – Nashville, Tennessee

WHEREAS, the Fourth Amendment to the U.S Constitution guarantees the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures;

WHEREAS, the United States Supreme Court has held that the right to travel from one state to another…is not a mere conditional liberty subject to regulation and control under conventional due process or equal protection standards, but a right broadly assertable against private interference, as well as governmental action, and a virtually unconditional personal right guaranteed by the Constitution (Shapiro v Thompson 394 U.S.);

WHEREAS, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has deployed advance imaging technology requiring a traveler to either submit to a scan with the capability to capture a virtual naked image of the person or to submit to an intrusive, groping search including the touching of the individual’s genitals as a condition of travel without probable cause that the individual poses any threat;

WHEREAS, there remain significant questions about the long-term safety and effectiveness of the technology as a security devise;

WHEREAS, refusal to submit to a body scan does not constitute probable cause to be searched;

WHEREAS, it is an appropriate role of the Congress and the governments of the several Sates to protect her citizens from the abuse of over-zealous government employees groping and abusing them without probable cause and in the name of safety; now

THEREFORE be it resolved that the Constitution Party urges Congress to abolish the TSA.

BE IT LIKEWISE RESOLVED that the Constitution Party urges the State legislatures to pass legislation to protect the rights and dignity of travelers by requiring that probable cause must be present for an individual to be searched as a condition of access to public facilities or transportation.