Teen girl: TSA stopped me because of gun-themed purse
A Florida teenager says her designer purse got her in trouble with the Transportation Security Administration and caused her to miss a flight from Norfolk to Jacksonville.
Vanessa Gibbs, 17, says it was an image of a gun on her purse that caught the TSA"s attention, according to Jacksonville"s WJXT-TV Channel 4.
ALSO ONLINE: TSA complaints drop to all-time low, report says
She says the TSA initially determined the gun-emblazoned purse to be a security risk when she tried to pass through a security checkpoint at Norfolk International Airport.
"It"s my style. It"s camouflage. It has an old Western gun on it," Gibbs tells WJXT. "She (the TSA agent) was like, "This is a federal offense because it"s in the shape of a gun." I"m like, "But it"s a design on a purse. How is it a federal offense?" "
BEHIND THE SCENES AIRPORT TOUR: Jacksonville"s airports
Norfolk"s WAVY-TV 10 says that – eventually – "agents determined the gun was not real, but told Gibbs to check the bag or hand it over."
WAVY adds "the TSA stands by the rule, saying replica weapons have been banned since 2002."
"Security checkpoints may be impacted or closed because replica weapons like toy guns, novelty grenades, fake bombs and other items appear similar to the real thing when viewed through an X-ray machine," TSA spokesman Greg Soule says to CNN. "Checkpoint closures cause significant delays, which can be avoided if passengers don"t bring these items to the airport."
FULL STORY: Florida teen detained by TSA for purse design (First Coast News)
Florida"s First Coast News says that "by the time security wrapped up the inspection, the pregnant teen missed her flight (to Jacksonville), and Southwest Airlines sent her to Orlando instead."
"I was so upset," said Gibb"s mother Tami tells First Coast News. "I was on the phone all the way to Orlando trying to f