UPDATE, 5/3: John Brennan, the man who stripped in protest of the TSA last month, has decided to fight the misdemeanor indecent exposure charge and go to trial, according to MSNBC.
Brennan could have entered a local community court program, which would treat the charge as a citation rather than a misdemeanor. But Brennan and his attorney instead decided to go to trial, saying he was simply exercising his Constitutional right. "His (letter of) apology would be more of an explanation and so community court is simply not appropriate for him because he has said 'I didn't do anything wrong,'" his attorney told reporters, OregonLive.com reports.
Now either the charge will be dismissed or he will head to trial, as soon as mid-June.
PREVIOUSLY:
UPDATE, 4:55pm: John Brennan claims he was being "nude but not lewd" when he stripped down to his birthday suit at the Portland airport on Tuesday, the Associated Press reports. Brennan claims his act was one of defiance as he thinks the TSA "has trouble balancing the line between privacy and security" and he decided to protest after he was pulled aside after going through a metal detector. Brennan faces charges of disorderly conduct and indecent exposure.
PREVIOUSLY: A Portland man who felt like he was being "harassed" by the TSA stripped down in protest Tuesday, and tried to pass through security completely naked.
John E. Brennan, 49, was heading from Portland to San Jose, Calif. He caused two security lanes to be temporarily closed and forced "some passengers to cover their eyes and their children's eyes while others looked, laughed and took photos," reports the Associated Press.
"When interviewed about his actions, Mr. Brennan stated he flys (sic) a lot and had disrobed as a form of protest against TSA screeners who he felt were harassing him," CNN reports.
According to OregonLive.com, Brennan refused to put his clothes back on, even after repeat requests by the TSA. He was arrested and booked in the Multnomah County Jail.
Brennan was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Last week a woman stripped at Denver's International Airport after being asked to put out a cigarette. She was taken to a hospital for mental evaluation.
A string of incidents involving stripping and the TSA has taken over the news in the past. In November 2010, a college student stripped to a Speedo in protest and in December 2010, a wheelchair-user from Oklahoma stripped into lingerie for a patdown.
Check out the TSA biggest fails below.
