Article

MIT student apologizes for shirt that led to Logan disturbance

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff  |  June 3, 2008

Star Simpson, an MIT student who created an uproar last year when her sweatshirt decorated with circuitry lights was mistaken for a bomb at Logan International Airport, yesterday apologized for the actions that nearly led to her being shot by State Police as a suspected terrorist.

Simpson was placed on pretrial probation on a disorderly person charge in East Boston Municipal Court after Suffolk District Attorney Daniel F. Conley's office dropped a charge of possession of a hoax device.

Simpson, 20, was ordered by Judge Paul Mahoney to perform 50 hours of community service with veterans and students and to publicly acknowledge her mistake.

Late yesterday afternoon, Simpson released a statement through her Boston attorney, Thomas E. Dwyer Jr.

"I want to apologize for the results of my conduct on Sept. 21, 2007," Simpson said in the statement. "Although I never intended to act in a disorderly fashion, I now realize that the shirt I created caused alarm and concern at Logan Airport.

"I am appreciative to the Massachusetts State Police for their diligence in protecting our citizens and apologize for the expense that was caused that day," she added.

Dwyer said Simpson, who had to appear in the East Boston courthouse about a half dozen times since her arrest, welcomed an end to the criminal charges against her.

"She's relieved," said Dwyer. "This was a fair result that allowed her to continue with her studies."

Simpson had a device made of a plastic circuit board decorated with green lights attached to the front of her black hooded sweatshirt when she walked up to the information counter in Terminal C at 8 a.m. on Sept. 21 and inquired about an incoming flight, State Police said.

Troopers, with machine guns aimed at Simpson, surrounded her outside the terminal and ordered her to raise her hands.

Massport spokesman Phil Orlandella said Simpson disrupted Logan significantly that day. "She was lucky she didn't get shot," he said. "She created a pretty nasty situation where we actually thought we had a bomb or the possibility of a bomb."

In a statement, Conley's office said prosecutors dropped the hoax bomb charge, in part because Simpson immediately heeded orders from police.

Prosecutors also concluded that there was not enough evidence to convict Simpson of intending to upset the public at Logan Airport, as required under the hoax bomb statute.

Simpson, who was 19 at the time, said she had designed the device with LEDs, light-emitting diodes, as a piece of art and wore it to attract attention at a college career fair. She said she was meeting her boyfriend at the airport.

Dwyer has said Simpson had a First Amendment right to express herself by wearing it, an argument Judge Mahoney rejected earlier this year, leading to yesterday's disposition.

Dwyer said Simpson, from Lahaina, Hawaii, is scheduled to return to MIT this fall for her junior year but will spend the first semester with other MIT students installing an electrical power grid in a Guatemalan village.

"Star Simpson was never guilty of possessing a fake bomb and never had the requisite intent to be found guilty of that crime," Dwyer said in a statement. "It is abundantly clear that the district attorney's office agreed with my opinion."

This is the best nation on Earth.

Somehow.

Whole

E.

Fuck

The Tron guy woulda been shot on sight I guess.

OMG BOMB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She wasn't wrong, but she had to apologize?

Quoted: She wasn't wrong, but she had to apologize?

Fellas, this country is going down the shitter QUICK.  

Now where did I put my V mask....  

-X

Quoted: She wasn't wrong, but she had to apologize?

This is one of those times a little bit of common sense would have gone a long way for her

In all seriousness, showing up at an airport with a device with wires and a battery is STUPID.

(yeah, I know it's a proto-board with a couple of LED's & a 9V battery, still STUPID)

Good Lord.  So do the troopers at the airport think the LEDs in little kids' shoes are "shoe bombs?"

And ok, I'll bite... was the trooper motivated to think "bomb" because she appears somewhat brown or like "a terrorist" should look like?
Note: the last paragraph was a joke.  Oops, guess I can't do that, right?

good thing it wasn't me, I'd have been thrown in jail for contempt of court when I told the judge to suck my cock.

as i recall, she had an unexplained block of clay in her hands, and was kneading it while acting strangely, which attracted the attention to her.

Star Simpson, 19, was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and approached an airport employee in Terminal C at 8 a.m. to inquire about an incoming flight from Oakland, according to Major Scott Pare of the State Police. She was holding a lump of what looked like putty in her hands. The employee asked about the plastic circuit board on her chest, and Simpson walked away without responding, Pare said.

link

this idiot did it on purpose. she knew that it might be as a bomb, and is now continueing to try to get out of trouble for her stunt.

I can kinda see how someone would mistake that for a bomb. I have to say wearing something like that in a place where something as mundane such as an eyeglass repair kit is considered a weapon is none too bright.

I guess Darwin was on vacation that day. Lucky her.

Quoted: good thing it wasn't me, I'd have been thrown in jail for contempt of court when I told the judge to suck my cock.

That made me literally LOL

Quoted: Quoted: good thing it wasn't me, I'd have been thrown in jail for contempt of court when I told the judge to suck my cock. That made me literally LOL

same here

Quoted: a.abcnews.com/images/US/ap_fake_bomb_070921_ms.jpg

OMG THE DREADED BREAD BOARD BOMB

goddamn... people are fucking stupid these days..

Quoted: as i recall, she had an unexplained block of clay in her hands, and was kneading it while acting strangely, which attracted the attention to her. Star Simpson, 19, was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and approached an airport employee in Terminal C at 8 a.m. to inquire about an incoming flight from Oakland, according to Major Scott Pare of the State Police. She was holding a lump of what looked like putty in her hands. The employee asked about the plastic circuit board on her chest, and Simpson walked away without responding, Pare said. link this idiot did it on purpose. she knew that it might be as a bomb, and is now continueing to try to get out of trouble for her stunt.

Okay, THAT makes more sense.  In that case, to hell with her.

She knew exactly what she was doing. She's lucky she didn't get shot.

Quoted: as i recall, she had an unexplained block of clay in her hands, and was kneading it while acting strangely, which attracted the attention to her. Star Simpson, 19, was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and approached an airport employee in Terminal C at 8 a.m. to inquire about an incoming flight from Oakland, according to Major Scott Pare of the State Police. She was holding a lump of what looked like putty in her hands. The employee asked about the plastic circuit board on her chest, and Simpson walked away without responding, Pare said. link this idiot did it on purpose. she knew that it might be as a bomb, and is now continueing to try to get out of trouble for her stunt.

Sorry, I must have misread the Thread Title, "Student apologizes for airport's/state trooper's stupidity that almost got her killed "

I "thought" you were calling the cops stupid for gun-pointing a person with a visible and illuminated circuit board connected to a 9v battery attached to her black hooded sweatshirt; while playing with a "putty like substance", and not responding the questions from the ticket agent in an airport 10 days after the anniversary of 911.

I'm sorry, I misunderstood that you actually were calling her STUPID.

Would this have caused that much of a stir in 1999 or 2000?

-X

Quoted: In all seriousness, showing up at an airport with a device with wires and a battery is STUPID. (yeah, I know it's a proto-board with a couple of LED's & a 9V battery, still STUPID)

+1

Batteries + circuit board + blob of clay = C4 bomb to anyone that has seen a movie.

She was the stupid one.

Terrorists FTW...

Dumbasses...

yep, must be that obvious that anybody who walks into an airport with something attached to their body, with blinking lights and wires all over it, holding a putty like substance, and not answering questions about it, can't be a terrorist, and should be allowed to do whatever they want. yep, it was stupid of the airport security to suspect anything.


here is more

She “said it was a piece of art,” Margolis said, and “refused to answer any more questions.” Jake Wark, spokesperson for the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, said that Simpson only described the LED lights after she was “repeatedly questioned by the MassPort employee.” Simpson then “roamed briefly around the terminal,” Wark said. Margolis said this caused several Logan employees to flee the building. As Simpson left the building, she disconnected the battery powering the device, according to a press release provided by Wark.

link from mit paper

so it she knew what was going on...

also, notice the story the OP posted has been sanitized.. there is no mention of her behavior, or that she had been carrying the putty.

Sounds like she missed the Darwin bus by this >< much.

She obviously knew exactly what she was doing, and she thought it would be fun.

Quoted: Sounds like she missed the Darwin bus by this >< much. She obviously knew exactly what she was doing, and she thought it would be fun.

[Will Smith] You're the dumbest smart person I know [/Will Smith]

If it's shown that she was intending to cause a stir then yes, she's pretty stupid. She took a real risk.

I won't alter my opinion that the everybody else over reacted though.

I'm appalled that we've allowed our thinking as a country to become as tainted as it is with paranoia and distrust.

Quoted: i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/80kyle80/mooninite_lightboard.jpg OMG BOMB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj65/80kyle80/panicsmiley.gif

In Boston again, no less.

Quoted: If it's shown that she was intending to cause a stir then yes, she's pretty stupid. She took a real risk. I won't alter my opinion that the everybody else over reacted though. I'm appalled that we've allowed our thinking as a country to become as tainted as it is with paranoia and distrust.

Then how should people have reacted?

I won't redescribe the device, but I will reiterate when the agent at the counter asks what it is she just up and leaves without saying a word.

And I will reiterate no matter what her intention she was plain stupid in this case.

A proper police response.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: good thing it wasn't me, I'd have been thrown in jail for contempt of court when I told the judge to suck my cock. That made me literally LOL same here

+3


There's no way in buttfucking hell I could manage to get myself to say that bullshit.  I'd modify it as my words came out:

"Although it was not my intent to cause alarm at the airport, I vastly overestimated the intellectual capacity of you fucking morons.  That is surely one mistake I will not make again.  Because you ignorant fucks were made - by your own paranoia - to be scared, this cocksucking dimwit of a judge has ordered me to apologize.  So fine, I apologize.....that you are a bunch of dumb motherfuckers.  Thanks and have a nice day."

Quoted: Quoted: If it's shown that she was intending to cause a stir then yes, she's pretty stupid. She took a real risk. I won't alter my opinion that the everybody else over reacted though. I'm appalled that we've allowed our thinking as a country to become as tainted as it is with paranoia and distrust. Then how should people have reacted? I won't redescribe the device, but I will reiterate when the agent at the counter asks what it is she just up and leaves without saying a word. And I will reiterate no matter what her intention she was plain stupid in this case. A proper police response.

People should react based on how many terrorist attacks we've had in this country and in what manner they've occurred.

There have been more successful domestic terror attacks than foreign. In America we're more of a hazard to ourselves than any other agency.

Quoted: Batteries + circuit board + blob of clay = C4 bomb to anyone that has seen a movie. She was the stupid one.

I think we found the root cause of the problem.

In my day to day affairs, I am continually utterly fucking shocked by the number of people who think TV movies are 100% real.  

I might give a shit if the chic was hot.  Her hair looks like it's been in a bomb blast.

Quoted: In all seriousness, showing up at an airport with a device with wires and a battery is STUPID. (yeah, I know it's a proto-board with a couple of LED's & a 9V battery, still STUPID)

+1

Quoted: Quoted: Batteries + circuit board + blob of clay = C4 bomb to anyone that has seen a movie. She was the stupid one. I think we found the root cause of the problem. In my day to day affairs, I am continually utterly fucking shocked by the number of people who think TV movies are 100% real.

Wires?
A circuit board?
SILLY PUTTY?
ZOMG!!!!!11!!11ONE!1ELEVEN! TERRORRORRIRISSTS

She should should have been sentenced to 1 week at Gitmo for being such a fucktard.

Boston's Logan airport was a departure point for the Sept. 11 terrorists.

Is Boston overly sensitive?  Yes.  People involved in security at Logan are indeed sensitive.

What she did was a stunt.  A stupid narcissistic exercise that ended up in her arrest.  

I doubt she will learn from this, though.  

 

Pfffft.  It's MassO'2Sh!ts.  What did anyone really expect?

I love this board. When this incident occurred there was a nice long thread full of people who were thrilled that airport security had actually done something, and more than a few who thought that the cops should have shot her if they really thought she had a bomb.

Now we've got guys who are pretending that they would tell a judge to "suck my dick" if they were ever in the same situation.

The girl walked into an airport wearing a device that resembled a suicide bomb. The police seemed to think that is what it was. Whether she did it on purpose or not, she's lucky that she was able to walk away.

If that's really the best she can do then her proto skills suck, Stevie Wonder could do a better job.

Well, I guess the attention whore got her 15 minutes...

Quoted: She knew exactly what she was doing. She's lucky she didn't get shot.

+1. She was looking for a reaction and got it. The action taken was appropriate under the circumstances.

height=8

Quoted: The girl walked into an airport wearing a device that resembled a suicide bomb. The police seemed to think that is what it was. Whether she did it on purpose or not, she's lucky that she was able to walk away.

No, she had a circuit board with green LED's on it.  Unless those cops watch too many movies, most "suicide bombs" are some kind of explosive strapped to one's chest with a trigger to set it off.  No terrorist would go through all the trouble to hooking up LED's to make their bomb look "cool" or teh gehy.  

Quoted: Quoted: The girl walked into an airport wearing a device that resembled a suicide bomb. The police seemed to think that is what it was. Whether she did it on purpose or not, she's lucky that she was able to walk away. No, she had a circuit board with green LED's on it.  Unless those cops watch too many movies, most "suicide bombs" are some kind of explosive strapped to one's chest with a trigger to set it off.  No terrorist would go through all the trouble to hooking up LED's to make their bomb look "cool" or teh gehy.

Most LEO and TSA agents are not EOD experts.  

This closet lesbian is an idiot.

My .02 is if the staties/airport security over react everytime some idiot walks in an airport looking suspicious with blinking lights, wires, and what appears to be either C4 or Semtex, then let them overreact. It means they're deligent and taking no compromises because once security starts becoming lax, that's when you give criminals, terrorist foreign or domestic a chance to strike and that's when you loose lives.

The sad thing is people blame airport security for being overzealous and would've probably also blamed them for not doing their job if that carpetmuncher indeed carrying a bomb and have manage to detonate it.

Quoted: Quoted: The girl walked into an airport wearing a device that resembled a suicide bomb. The police seemed to think that is what it was. Whether she did it on purpose or not, she's lucky that she was able to walk away. No, she had a circuit board with green LED's on it.  Unless those cops watch too many movies, most "suicide bombs" are some kind of explosive strapped to one's chest with a trigger to set it off.  No terrorist would go through all the trouble to hooking up LED's to make their bomb look "cool" or teh gehy.

I'm aware that it was not a real suicide bomb. Hell, it doesn't even look like any suicide bomb I've ever seen.

However, it looked enough like one to make those cops think that it was one. I promise, they didn't all run out after her with submachineguns because they didn't like her lame homemade shirt or her stupid looking haircut. They did it because they thought it was a bomb.

The land of the free, the mightiest nation on Earth,
Frightened by computer nerdia and hotdogs with wires sticking out.

height=8

Quoted: Most LEO and TSA agents are not EOD experts.

Yep and even if they were like I mentioned in previous post, would they really take the chance and say "oh it can't be a bomb because it's got blinking lights like the ones int he movies".

If they see a 2 year-old walking around with shoes blinking red lights while holding mommys hand while dad is pushing a stroller then it's probably not a threat. But as many of you have mentioned when you walk into an airport alone, acting suspicious, playdough in hand (and you seem too old for it), circuit board on your chesticles with blinking lights, refusing to answer an airport/airline employees simple question, you definitely are raising a major flag.

From the MIT article:

Simpson had five to six ounces of Play-Doh in her hands, State Police Maj. Scott Pare said in a press conference this morning.

5-6 ounces is about the size of a baseball.  

So not only do you have this chick with wires and batteries hanging off her chest, she's got the Play-Doh.

It was a fucking stunt all the way.  Good job on the Airport security.

Kevin "Stupid bitch."