Federal and local investigators gather in Terminal 3 at Los Angeles International Airport where a gunman armed with a semi-automatic rifle opened fire, killing a Transportation Security Administration employee and wounding two other people. / AP

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The U.S. Transportation Security Administration is considering a policy change that would allow airport security screeners to carry cellphones so they can quickly call for help in an emergency.

The proposal is part of an ongoing review of the response to a November shooting at the Los Angeles International Airport that left a TSA officer dead, according to an agency official close to the investigation who requested anonymity. The official wasn't authorized to speak publically about the investigation because it is ongoing.


In the November shooting, TSA officers - who are unarmed - fled the screening area without hitting a panic button or using a landline to call for help. It took a call from an airline contractor to a police dispatcher, who then alerted officers over the radio - a lag of nearly a minute and a half, the officials said.

The Los Angeles shooting refocused the public's attention on airport security. Despite many changes since the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, it's almost impossible to stop a gunman from simply entering a terminal.

Minutes before a gunman opened fire in November, the two armed officers assigned to the area left for breaks without informing a dispatcher as required.









According to investigators, Ciancia arrived at the airport with the intention of killing TSA workers. Authorities have said Ciancia had a grudge against the agency, but they have not indicated what prompted it.


Read the original story: TSA mulls cellphone use post-LAX shooting


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